That Nostalgic Summer Rain
by MortiferSV
Summary: A girl burdened by a sinful nature seeks to justify her existence, and follows a lost soul to Karakura Town to offer a helping hand. Archived from Sufficient Velocity. AU.
1. Chapter 1

It was on the eighth of August, when the corpse was discovered.

Kurogiri Satsuki, the teacher. Only a few months ago, he had replaced Hayama Hideo, after he was fired and subsequently disappeared.

The girl sat on a bench in Reien Girl's Academy, as her fellow students around her talked about the tragedy.

"It's so sad." One of the fellow students muttered to a friend. "He was so nice..."

"He didn't really seem like much." Someone else said. "But... He only just started. And now he's gone."

The girl didn't feel too much about the victim. It wasn't that she was uncaring. It was tragic that someone had died, and even if the girl had barely known Kurogiri, it was still sad. But currently, there was a bigger question on her mind.

Kurogiri had been the supervisor of Class D, and less than a week ago, that class had been involved in another incident. The girl hadn't given it much thought, thinking it was just a rumour, but she should have known better. She, at least, knew that a rumour wasn't necessarily untrue. The whispers of her name behind her back were more true than anyone else thought.

As the rumour went, Class D had awoken in the old school dormitory six days ago, in the middle of the night. Nobody remembered how they had gotten there, and as the rumour went, some of them had lighters on them. A usually innocuous thing, until one remembered why the old school dormitory was out of commission.

The incident over which Hayama Hideo had been fired had been a fire, in that dormitory. A student had been unable to escape the blaze, and had been killed. A student in Class D.

Tragedy seemed to follow that class, it would appear. After the fire, the class had slowly deteriorated. Their grades had dropped, and they appeared to grow more paranoid over time, until the incident. And now their teacher had been killed.

Perhaps the girl was wrong, to let it distract her from the tragedy, but it had seemed too interconnected to be mere chance.

No, it was more than that. Before the incident in the old school dormitory six days ago, there had been another oddity which had concerned the girl. She had dismissed the connection earlier, because nobody had died until the oddity had passed, but if it was all connected, then perhaps that dismissal had been a mistake.

Kokutou Azaka had introduced Ryougi Shiki to Reien Girl's Academy.

Such a thing would, in most circumstances, be easily dismissed. That name is one most thought nothing of, apart from the fact that the Ryougi were a rich family. And that was not overly of note in Reien Girl's Academy. Wealthy families enrolling their daughters in the Academy was hardly new, and with the Student Council President demonstrating enough sway with the staff as she had, the monetary sway most of the well-off students had wasn't as impressive.

No, the name Ryougi Shiki would not mean much to most students in Reien Girl's Academy. But to those such as the girl, who knew who Ryougi was, the fact that she had been here was a disturbing thought. To most, she was simply a distant, perhaps rude figure. But the truth was, Ryougi Shiki's presence was an ill omen. From what the girl had heard from Ryougi, she was not easy to motivate, and from what the girl had experienced personally, what did motivate Ryougi was not safe for anyone else.

Asagami Fujino had seen firsthand, the extent that Ryougi Shiki would go to for the sake of killing another person. She would not be interested in a safe person as a victim, but with a suitable target, she would stop at nothing. The fact that Ryougi Shiki had come to Reien Girl's Academy had been a sign of danger to come, and Fujino had been a fool, to think otherwise.

Ryougi had already left by the time Kurogiri had been killed, so whatever her involvement had been, it had already ceased. Perhaps the incident six days ago had been what she had waited for. But as of the current moment, it was unlikely to have been Ryougi's hands who had killed Kurogiri. Even still, the involvement of that woman...

Fujino repressed a shudder, as she continued listening to the people around her.

"I wonder how Ouji's taking it..." Another girl said. "She was fond of Kurogiri, wasn't she?"

"Was she? I don't think I ever heard her talk about him."

"They'd meet together all the time. And of course you wouldn't have, Ouji doesn't gossip idly. Not since the fire..."

The girl tilted her head to position her ear towards that specific conversation. The student council president had been effected by the fire as well? She hadn't been part of Class D. Was this another connection which she had overlooked?

"The fire? You mean where-"

"Yes, that one. Tachibana had been Ouji's friend, you know. She hasn't been the same since, really."

Tachibana. That was the girl who had died in the fire. She was close to Ouji? In that case, perhaps it was her that tragedy was following, if she was also fond of the teacher who had been killed.

"Has anyone seen Ouji?" The conversation continued. "She's not here, and I don't think I've seen her around..."

"Not since yesterday." Someone else continued. "She was looking for some scissors just after class, I think she said?"

"I hope she's okay. She's been through a lot."

...She has, hadn't she?

Fujino kept her grip on her cane as she kept that train of thought.

Ouji Misaya was relatively well known in Reien, but Fujino had never given her too much thought. Now, the girl wondered if she should have paid more attention. Maybe Ouji was merely running late, but with a second person she cared about dying in only a handful of months...

Turning her head so as to look to another nearby group of students, Fujino adjusted her cane to tap along the edge of the bench to ensure she knew how far down it she could go, and slid down. The conversation around her faltered for a second as the cane tapped, Fujino noted. It was disappointing, Fujino mused, that she stuck out as abnormal now. But at the very least, being blind wasn't as bad as everyone knowing what she had done.

"Excuse me." The girl asked, smiling. "Has anyone seen the student council president?"

There was silence for a moment, before someone in the group responded.

"I heard a rumour that her dorm mate didn't see her last night." A girl whose voice Fujino didn't recognise began. "Apparently, all of her things were still there, but Ouji herself never turned up."

"I see..." Fujino muttered under her breath. "Everything was still there?"

"That's not what I heard." Another girl said. "Apparently, there was some things missing. Tachibana's old things, I think? Maybe Ouji was feeling sad and went to go somewhere to relive old times? Oh, that sounds almost romantic..."

"Tachibana's things?" A third voice asked. "I thought it was that the dormmate was missing a map, not that Ouji's old friends belongings disappeared as well."

"No, no, that's not it." The second voice said. "The map had been moved, but not taken. Someone had traced a location-"

"Hey guys." Another voice interrupted, sitting down next to Fujino. It took the girl a moment to recognise the voice. Seo Shizune, Azaka's dormmate. "What's up?"

"We're talking about Ouji." One of the girls Fujino was talking to replied. "I don't think anyone seen her since-"

"She's going to Karakura Town." Seo interrupted.

There was silence following her declaration, so Fujino took it upon herself to start the conversation again.

"Ah... How do you know what, Seo?"

The other girl hesitated for a moment, before she replied.

"I... Have a friend in the city, who saw her yesterday." She decided, eventually. "She said that Ouji was buying a train ticket to Karakura town, without even changing out of the Reien uniform. She seemed like she was in a hurry? I don't know, but they haven't been wrong about this before."

Seo did this often, Fujino reflected. She always seemed to know things and then give an unconvincing response as to how she knows, but always ended up right in the end. Maybe she was secretly sneaking out, or had a lover in the city she didn't want people to know about. But, if it was Seo saying it, then it was probably right.

But why would Ouji be heading to Karakura town?

"Thank you, Seo." Fujino replied, smiling. "I was wondering where she was. Honestly, I was getting worried about her."

Maybe the rumours were accurate again, in what was missing. Maybe Ouji had run away with Tachibana's old belongings. Maybe Ouji wasn't doing too well, right now.

She didn't know the details, but she did know that Kurogiri's body was only found this morning, and he hadn't been seen after classes yesterday. Perhaps Ouji stumbled across his body before anyone else had, and ran away in a panic afterwards. Chances were, she wouldn't be feeling too good about herself right about now.

Perhaps Fujino was jumping to conclusions, making an assumption when she shouldn't, but it didn't sound as if Ouji was in the best state, right now. And Fujino had been going off of less evidence, when Risu was mourning her friend. If Fujino hadn't intervened then, then a classmate of hers would have died months ago.

Withdrawing from the conversation for a while, Fujino took a moment to think about it.

It would be easy enough, to get away from Reien. If she told the staff she was feeling concerned about her health, they would be obligated to let her leave the academy for a while. And if she was caught going to Karakura, she could just claim she was heading somewhere nearby to find a new doctor for a second opinion, just to be safe.

She did feel bad, honestly, about lying like that. But Fujino had made up her mind. She had done something terrible in the past, and yet when retribution came upon her, she was spared. Fujino had to prove that her survival wasn't a mistake, and if helping her classmates did that, then that would be what she did.

...No, more than that. Fujino did not have to prove that it was right for her to continue to live, she had to ensure that she atoned for the sins she had committed. Humans carried their sins with them forever. If Fujino wanted to be able to bear her burden, she had to continue to help others. A minor inconvenience like having to lie and missing a few days from school was nothing. With the sins she was bearing, such a thing was a merciful price, to lift that burden for but a moment.

Tonight, Fujino decided. She would go to Karakura town tonight, and find Ouji Misaya. If she needed help, then Fujino was here for that.

* * *

The hardest part about it was convincing the staff that Fujino would be fine on her own.

That wasn't even that difficult, all things considered. It had been several months, and Fujino had adapted to her new blindness well enough. Nowadays, she didn't even need to cheat, with how well she had remembered Reien Girl's Academy's layout. The train to Karakura Town was more than capable of accommodating Fujino, and she was able to reach the small town fairly easily indeed.

After that, getting out of the train station was a bit of an ordeal, but one Fujino had grown accustomed to. People gave her space when they saw her cane, asking for guidance was easy enough, and even if she disliked moving so slowly, she had managed to leave the station and get into the city proper before long.

Now it was just a matter of finding a place to stay, for however long it took to find Ouji or hear that she was alright. A hotel of some description. Fujino knew it would be easy enough to simply ask, but...

Well, perhaps part of her wanted to do it the other way. The part of her Fujino should probably be ignoring, but which she could see the logic behind this time. She was in a new city, and an understanding of it's layout would make it easier for her to move. And besides, there was something about this town that was giving her the chills. An instinctual gut feeling, that it would be better this way.

It took some walking to manage it again, but the girl was able to get away from the station before long. Once that was done, and Fujino could no longer hear a crowd around her or cars moving through the street, she closed the eyes that kept opening reflexively without reason.

She knew she could do this without hurting anyone around her, she had done it before, but it was best to avoid the potential situation in which she was wrong. It was as easy as flicking a switch, really.

One moment, there was only darkness. The next, Fujino saw all.

This power of hers, the ESP she possessed, was a coincidentally useful ability. The blind, with the ability to see everything around them...

Ah, if only she could properly trust herself to use her ability constantly. But even if she had done this safely before, she couldn't trust her own thought process to understand when she goes too far.

No, it was better that she only used her power on rare occasions. In fact, thinking about it, the excuse she had come up with to do this now didn't even sound convincing to her. Perhaps she should-

The bird's eye view granted to Fujino through her power presented to her a sight that interrupted her mental progression.

How unexpected. Some kind of monster.

It was lurking in the shadows of an alleyway, laying in wait for something. What, Fujino wouldn't have been able to tell. The monster appeared to have some kind of mask fused into it's body, and a hole through what looked vaguely like a chest.

...What exactly was this? Fujino knew that the supernatural existed, but she had never encountered something like this before.

The monster in the alley three blocks behind peaked out of the shadows for a moment, then skittered back into it, vibrating slightly in anticipation. Shifting her clairvoyance, Fujino took a moment to observe why.

A human was walking down the street, towards the point where the alley began, where the monster would be. They appeared to be ignorant of the threat they were walking towards, even now.

Perhaps it was time that Fujino intervened, then? It would hardly be fitting, for her to simply overlook a situation in which someone is in danger, when she could so easily stop it.

She turned, using her cane to established the area around her body, which she was no longer watching, and made sure to swing it in a wide arc on the ground as she walked to ensure that anyone who happened to wander by would notice her distraction.

The monster was there, and by the second, the potential victim was drawing closer. As she closed in herself, Fujino took a moment to take a look at the person walking down the street.

 **[X] A boy with orange hair, looking around nervously as if worried that someone might see him.**  
 **[X] A girl with black hair, an annoyed expression on her face as she muttered to herself.**  
 **[X] A small girl, seemingly oblivious to the world around her.**


	2. Chapter 2

**[X] A girl with black hair, an annoyed expression on her face as she muttered to herself.**

Fujino observed the girl for a moment. It was clear that something was annoying her, at the very least. A slightly hunched back, a faint scowl, her mouth constantly moving in what was clearly speech, even though there was nobody around to talk to her.

Perhaps it had something to do with the cast her arm was in, the girl mused. People were rather attached to their limbs.

Whatever it was that was annoying her, though, was hardly the issue right now. She wasn't taking any of the turns away, and at this point, she was drawing dangerously close to that monster.

Looking at it again, the monster reminded Fujino of a mantis. It's black body was long, lanky, and it's mask seemed more triangular than a human head. It's limbs curved at peculiar angles. It continued to vibrate, as the girl drew closer.

As she moved her body closer to the scene, Fujino observed the girl and the monster some more. It would be easy, to kill the monster right now. It painted a disturbing figure, but compared to Ryougi, it fell short. And even if it was somehow supernatural, the mantis-like body was thin.

The word was on her lips, even if they were unnecessary. The girl drew closer, as Fujino grew closer, and the monster's vibrations increased. And yet, she waited.

Perhaps it was on indulgence, Fujino taking the moment to observe the world through her own power again. She had come to live with the blindness, but when she came across moments like this, she let them linger. There was so much she would miss, when the darkness to return. In this moment, she could see the spiked black hair of the frustrated girl, just as she could see the tensing of the muscles on the monster as it prepared to pounce. Once this moment ended, she may never see either again.

This moment was worth treasuring, for as long as it lasted.

The next moment came, the girl passed the alley, and the mantis pounced.

As close as she was now, Fujino heard the scream, as the creature's arms grabbed the girl. One palm pressed in on the cast, and the other pushed down, forcing her to the ground. It was a pained scream, and a shocked one, and at that moment, Fujino acted.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The arm pressing down on the girl's cast contorted, like a screw being undone. Bleed burst forth from the twisted point, and the creature gave a screech of pain. The girl stared up in shock, but reacted quickly enough, wresting her good arm free while the entity was in pain. Fujino felt a small pain in her eyes as she concentrated on the curse, the limb completing it's first complete rotation. The girl struck out against the limb that bled like a faucet, and the already weakened limb snapped.

Fujino felt a familiar sensation, as she watched the limb fall to the ground. Right now, she had little time to enjoy the feeling. Or enjoy feeling at all. As fascinating as it was to be able to feel pain again, she had little time to enjoy the stinging pain in her eyes, as her psychic power worked through them.

Feeling that pain allowed Fujino a semblance of normality. All her life, she had been insensitive, but once her power had been unlocked, the feeling came to her. But that normality wasn't something she deserved to embrace, if she could not earn it, and allowing someone to die as she watched and enjoyed the feeling would be another sin for her to bear.

The monster lunged down at the girl, it's bone white mask opening into a dark maw as it bit into her good arm, and another cry of pain echoed out. Turning away from her thoughts, Fujino focused on the mantis, and felt her power swirl around it's neck.

With a thought, Fujino watched it bend. The fangs trapped around the girl's arm tore flesh away, before it's mouth opened, and as she waited a few buildings away, and the scream that echoed out was decidedly more human than it had been previously.

The victim backed away, pushing herself to her feet with a hiss of pain, before letting her bloodied arm hang by her side. She backed away from the monster, and Fujino let her slip out of mind as she concentrated on the being's neck.

The mantis reeled away, and a snap echoed faintly. The masked head tore free from the body, and the monster collapsed. It twitched for a moment as it died.

That familiar sensation grew stronger, as Fujino observed the body. It's arm contorted, it's head torn asunder, because of her will. A life snuffed out because it was what she wished.

Slowly, Fujino brought a hand to her face, to confirm. She was smiling.

It didn't make a difference, then. A monster or a man, Asagami Fujino was a murderer who loved the thrill.

"What the..." Fujino heard another voice say, as she dropped her hand down. It took her a moment after that to realise how close she had come to the conflict she had been observing.

She was within earshot of the girl. As chances went, likely within sight as well. Within view of the monstrous corpse and the bleeding girl who seemed to be questioning what was happening.

That was troublesome. Fujino was not the best liar, and the last time something like this had happened, Fujino had failed to hide anything.

She did not regret the decision to save Miyazuki Risu. The girl had more of a right to life than Fujino herself had, even if she felt the guilt of what had happened to her friend. But in hindsight, the decisions Fujino had made in the process of saving the girl had been faulty.

Confessing to murder was not required to save Risu, and even ignoring the consequence to Fujino herself, a plan to terrify a suicidal person into fearing for their life was an ill thought out one. How much of it was that unconscious desire to kill influencing Fujino's decisions?

In the end, Risu had been saved, and the girl was thankful enough of Fujino's efforts that Fujino's confession was never spoken of again. But would a stranger who was saved with less personal interference feel the same, if she pushed hard enough and Fujino failed to keep her secret?

It'd be a lot simpler, she thought, to just twist her-

No.

Fujino caught the thought, and turned her ESP off. Her vision faded away into darkness, and the slight sting in her eyes faded away alongside the rest of her sense of pain.

There was something about her ESP that brought out the worst of her. It was not something she properly understood. It was not as if her power was the reason she felt happiness when she killed.

Before she could control when her power turned on and off, that night on the port, that was evidence enough. The second time Asagami Fujino met Ryougi Shiki, she was prepared to fight until her sense of pain went away again. She had lost her power and her will to fight, but the feeling had still been there. The feeling she hadn't wanted to accept she had felt, but undeniably so. Even without her power, she had smiled over the corpse.

The impact Fujino's ESP had on her was harder to place than that. And a thought to pursue another time. At the end of the day, the details were not that important right now. Right now, there was a stranger who had just been through an odd incident, and stumbled across Fujino standing within view. For now, it was more important to have this discussion.

"Hey." The girl said, calling out to Fujino. "Do you have any idea what's going on here?"

At least this question made it easy to play dumb, at least.

"I don't know what you mean." Fujino replied, smiling politely. "Did something happen, miss...?"

That should work out well enough. Making sure to move her cane around slightly a she did so, Fujino did her best to emphasis the point.

There was no reason for a blind girl to know about anything strange that happened nearby, after all.

There was silence for a moment, from the other girl, before she spoke again.

"What are you doing, standing around anyway?" She asked, her voice clearly agitated.

"Is there any reason why I shouldn't be?" Fujino asked in response.

"No." The girl continued. "But it's kinda weird that you were just standing around and doing nothing, after what just happened."

"I don't know what you mean, miss." Fujino stated again. "Are you okay? You seem agitated."

"I'm fine." The girl replied. "Just curious as to how you could've been standing so close and not have heard all the screaming, is all."

...Oh.

Perhaps, Fujino reflected, she had made a mistake with playing dumb. She had not thought that plan through as well as she could have.

"I don't get what's going on, not really." The girl admitted. "Some kind of... Invisible thing attacks me, then falls apart, and there's some girl standing around doing nothing and pretending that's nothing's going on. All of this is feeling familiar and I don't know why, I'm already dealing with a friend acting weird, and I just want to know what the hell's going on. Is that really too much to ask for?"

...Hm.

This had been a mistake, Fujino reflected. She was close to being caught out, here.

For as long as she had lived, Asagami Fujino had wanted to be normal. For as long as she could remember, she had been hiding things to appear normal. Her insensitivity to pain. What that gang had done to her, repeatedly. Her murders. You would think she would be better at hiding things, all things considered, but Fujino would often just avoid the conversation.

It was too late for that now, though. Avoiding topics was easier and simpler, when someone wasn't specifically looking for answers. And Fujino could see why someone would want an understanding of the supernatural, after what had happened. The supernatural world was one full of mysteries that Fujino had only the faintest idea about. Today, she had discovered that the supernatural extended beyond the ESP of certain humans.

Someone who had no idea that the supernatural existed at all would naturally be curious about it, upon facing it for the first time. Especially if their first experience was through violence. And did the girl just describe it as invisible?

There had to be more to it than just that if she had seen it fall, but that was odd. Fujino had seen the beast as clear as day. Perhaps her clairvoyance offered her sight beyond merely looking down at the world, then. But the point remained.

Perhaps Fujino could just tell the girl the basics. The supernatural existed, and she had some access to it. It would be letting a stranger know that Fujino was not normal, and the first stranger Fujino had come across at that, but it was hardly the worst secret. As long as she did not confess to murder again, she shouldn't have to worry too much.

Or perhaps Fujino could divert the topic, somehow. The girl had already admitted that she was agitated, and her arm was bleeding heavily the last Fujino had seen her. It should be possible for Fujino to simply blame the girl's injury, and say she was hallucinating because of blood loss, or something along those lines. It would give away that Fujino knew she was injured, but if the girl was convinced she needed to have her wound looked at as soon as possible, then Fujino should be able to avoid the conversation entirely.

Neither option was entirely appealing, but it wasn't as if Fujino could turn and run. She would trip over the first piece of uneven road if she kept any sort of pace meant to avoid the conversation.

Her concern heavy on her mind, Fujino spoke.

 **[X] The girl's injury was clearly influencing with her sense of reality. She should really have it looked at.**  
 **[X] There was no point hiding it. The supernatural did exist to a degree. Fujino had killed the creature.**


	3. Chapter 3

**[X] There was no point hiding it. The supernatural did exist to a degree. Fujino had killed the creature.**

Fujino was completely aware of her faults. They were many, and terrible. But she has always been a terrible liar, who only kept secrets because nobody had ever asked directly.

That was really something she needed to correct at some point, but it wasn't as if she could just practice lying. Azaka might be talked into doing it, but that would lead to a discussion as to what she would be lying about in the first place, which wouldn't help at all.

Taking a breath to steel herself, Fujino made her decision. Time to come clean, then.

"Fine, then." Fujino said. "If you want to know, I'll tell you."

There was a moment of silence, which Fujino guessed was the girl reacting in surprise to the statement.

"...Well, alright then." She replied, the annoyance still in her voice. "What's going on?"

"This might be hard to believe." Fujino stated, clearly. "But what you would call the 'Supernatural' is real."

"Nice and blunt, I see." The girl muttered. "What do you mean, the supernatural? What was... Whatever just happened?"

"Some kind of monster." Fujino replied. "I'll be honest. I haven't encountered anything like it before. I noticed it due to my own ability, and when it attacked you, I stopped it."

"You're a psychic, then?" The girl asked, a note of hesitance in her voice. "Or an ESPer?"

Fujino nodded. "That's right. I'm sorry I can't say about the monster that attacked you. Up until now, all I've ever encountered of the supernatural was other people with ESP."

"I... Okay, then." The girl stated. "Supernatural things exist. Weird invisible monsters attack people and people with ESP can just... What did you even do to it? I could barely see something there, but it looked like it was falling apart."

Fujino took a moment to make sure she wasn't expressing any sort of emotion that would look weird when talking about killing something.

"I forced it's head off." She admitted. "It was the quickest way to do it."

"Okay, that makes sense, ESPers who can just make something lose it's head from a few buildings away." The girl repeated. "And there's monsters which people with ESP can sense."

"I'm not sure about that." Fujino took a moment to interrupt. "The only other person with an ability like this did not have the same ability as me. They did develop the ability to see the invisible, but-"

Fujino fought down the faint uneasy feeling crawling up her spine as she remembered the way Ryougi Shiki had ended their fight.

The slightly bloodied kimono by her twisted arm, the torn remnant of her jacket tied around the wound. The deliberate pace that Ryougi took as she walked forward. The small smile on her face was she simply swung her knife, and the way Fujino's ESP had been dismissed, like a leaf cut from the air. The frenzied panic which set in as Ryougi Shiki described her power, the frantic attempt to get through her guard and the pit that had formed in her stomach when she realised Ryougi had closed the distance.

"-Even then, it was nothing like what I do." Fujino concluded, with barely a noticeable pause in the statement.

It was not a pleasant memory, Fujino reflected. And how unfortunate it was, that it was one of the last things Fujino had ever seen. Ryougi Shiki may have spared Asagami Fujino for reasons which the girl did not know nor understand, but the intimidating presence was not going to disappear just because Fujino could not understand the woman. If anything, the inability to comprehend her only made the dread worse.

She didn't know if the other girl had noticed the pause in Fujino's statement, though. Or if she had picked up on anything about Fujino's expression or posture that would imply an unpleasant memory. She was quiet for another moment, but was she deep in thought, or was she looking at Fujino suspiciously? It was at times like this that Fujino wished that she still had functional eyes. It was hard enough to understand people when she could still see them.

"Why... Does this all seem familiar?" The girl mutters to herself, low enough that Fujino doubted that she was supposed to hear it.

"Why does what seem familiar?" Fujino asked, regardless.

"Hm? Oh, sorry." The girl answered. "Just thinking out loud. Can't shake the feeling. Don't know why. I feel like I would remember if something like this had happened before... Ah, it's probably nothing, never mind."

How odd. The girl was right, you wouldn't really forget an encounter like that, so it feeling familiar would be hard to explain. Perhaps the sense of deja vu was from something else?

Well, never mind. Fujino had more important things to worry about, at this time.

"While we're here, may I ask a question?" Fujino asked. "As you can see, I am not really equipped to find my own way around. Do you know where I can find a hotel to stay?"

"Uh, sure." The girl took a moment to reply, sounding a bit distant. Perhaps she was not yet used to the revelation as of just yet. "Um, do you want to follow me, or would you prefer I just walked behind you and gave instructions?"

"Whatever you would prefer." Fujino replied, with a smile.

There was silence for another long moment.

"Wait, right, nodding won't- I got you. I'll follow."

Fujino nodded, and as she heard the footsteps of the girl walking behind her, it occurred to her that they had yet to introduces themselves.

"I should have mentioned earlier." She said. "I'm Asagami Fujino. Can I ask your name?"

"Arisawa." The girl replied. "Arisawa Tatsuki. Are you here for the school break?"

Sch-

Oh, right, this was around the time of year where public schools would be in break, wouldn't it? Reien's school calendar was not the same as any other school. It would likely be easier if Fujino did not mention that, though.

"Medical reasons." Fujino replied, offhand. "Nothing serious, don't worry. I'm only here because my last doctor missed something for so long that I'm trying to get a few more opinions."

There was silence for a moment, as Arisawa came to a step behind Fujino, avoiding the conversation in any further depth. Likely out of a sense of politeness.

"Should we go, then?" Fujino asked.

"Yeah, sure." Arisawa replied. "Just go straight for now. There's a turn ahead, I'll let you know when you get to it."

The two girls walked on for a bit, before Arisawa filled the silence.

"Thanks for saving me, by the way." She said. "I'm... Don't worry, I'm fine. Got a bit of a cut, but it's not too bad."

"Are you sure?" Fujino asked, fully aware of how bad the injury was. "Maybe you should get it disinfected, or-"

"Nah, it's good." The girl replied. "I've got some cloth on me, I'm putting pressure on it. I'll get it looked at after I've given you a hand, don't worry. Besides, this'd be a lot worse without you being around, so I owe you one."

Well, if she said so. Fujino was a bad judge at how bad an injury would be anyway. She knew people panicked over injuries, but had no way of measuring how bad a wound would be. A relic of her life without pain. Arisawa must have known more than Fujino did.

"If you're only helping me out of obligation, please, don't feel forced." Fujino said back to her guide. "I should be able to find someone else easily enough."

"Relax, I wasn't doing anything anyway." Arisawa assured her. "It's break, most of my friends are busy or out of town."

"if you insist." Fujino commented, as she walked on.

"Road's coming up, by the way." Arisawa noted. "Take a right up here."

Fujino nodded, and swept her cane around in that direction to make sure it was clear, before moving her body.

"Shuffle to the left a bit more." Arisawa noted. "You'll run into a sign if you stand there."

"Thank you." Asagami replied.

After a moment of thought, something occurred to her.

"Oh, Arisawa, can I ask you something?" Fujino asked. "A classmate of mine disappeared without telling anyone where she was going, recently. People said she's likely in Karakura Town, so I was wondering if you've seen her."

"There's been a few people from other towns dropping by." Arisawa replied. "I've seen a few people wandering around while they wait for a train to somewhere else, or dropping by the store. Who are you looking for?"

"Misaya Ouji." Fujino replied. "She has long hair. A lighter shade than mine, but a similar colour. Her dorm mate said all of her belongings are still in her room, so she's probably wearing the same uniform as I am."

"I don't remember seeing anyone like that." Arisawa replied. "Sorry. I'll let you know if I do, though."

"Thank you." Fujino replied. "She's been through some rough times recently. I want to give her a hand, if I can."

"Do you know anywhere where she might go?" Arisawa asked. "I needed something to do today anyway, I could keep an eye out for you. It's the least I could do."

"You're already doing me a favour by helping me find a hotel, Arisawa." Fujino commented. "Don't force yourself for my sake."

Though, now that she thought about it, Fujino really had no idea.

What kind of person was Misaya Ouji, anyway? She was the student council president, from a wealthy family. Supposedly, she was stern, but Fujino had never interacted with her much. All Fujino knew was that Misaya's friend had died recently, and a teacher she was close too died even more recently. She didn't have any real way of knowing where Misaya would be going, or what should would be doing.

This was hardly an easy task, Fujino reflected. But then, she would not want it to be. She was a murderer. Her continued existence was something that she did not deserve, and Fujino would never be able to accept a life in which she simply lived with the guilt and did nothing.

She did hope that the monster she had encountered earlier had been a one of a kind thing, though. It would be worrying if there was more than one of them, and Misaya had already proven to be something of a magnet for strange things causing problems.

"So, you're gonna be in Karakura for a while?" Arisawa asked, behind her, and Fujino took a moment to think of her reply.

"A few days, at the very least." Fujino replied. "I would like to spend some time asking around about Misaya. But I don't think I'll still be in the town for long after I have my check up."

For the most part, because she would not be able to. The last time Fujino had been left Reien for longer than she was supposed to, she had been hospitalised and blinded. She doubted that the academy would let her stay out for too long so soon after that, for fear of a repeat. And even if they sent nobody, Azaka would definitely look for her. She had felt bad when she had found out what had happened to Fujino, in so short a time since they parted.

It was troublesome to be sure. She was on a time limit, essentially, though she should at least be able to buy time if she claimed the doctor in town was processing records, or had been booked out for a few days.

Fujino still had to go and look for the doctor around here, she took the moment to think. Just so she was able to get her excuses in order.

With Arisawa giving directions, it didn't take long for Fujino to get to the hotel in town. It'd be simple enough to book a room from here.

"Thank you for your help." Fujino stated, turning her head as if she was looking back at the girl. "It's appreciated."

"It's nothing." Arisawa shrugged again. "Well, see you around."

Fujino hesitated with her farewell for a moment, as she took a moment to think.

Now that she thought about it, there was something she should look into tomorrow, and perhaps Arisawa would be able to answer a question so Fujino could work through it easier.

 **[X] She should get the doctors visit out of the way early. Fujino should ask Arisawa if she knows where she could got an appointment.**  
 **[X] Perhaps she should look more into the supernatural. Maybe if she was asked, Arisawa might remember an old rumour or relevant claim?**


	4. Chapter 4

**[X] She should get the doctors visit out of the way early. Fujino should ask Arisawa if she knows where she could got an appointment.**

"Before you go, Arisawa?" Fujino asked. She waited for a moment, to be sure. People usually take a second to properly focus, and Arisawa was preparing to leave, so it would be best to be certain that she was paying attention. "Do you know where I can find a doctor who can give me a check-up? It's a bit hard to check advertisements, you see."

There was a pause, and Fujino took a moment to try to work out if she was looking at Arisawa or not. The girl was walking behind her on the way to the hotel and Fujino hadn't turned around, but had she moved to talk, or was she still behind Fujino?

"There's a few places." Arisawa replied from behind her. That answered that question, Fujino thought, as she turned to face towards the source of the voice. "The Kurosaki clinic is the closest place, though. At least, I think so. It's where I usually go. It's a small place, but it's got basically everything. Unless you need surgery, but if you're just getting looked at, it'll be fine."

"Thank you." Fujino replied. "If I asked around, would anyone be able to show me the way?"

Another moment of silence passed by. "Oh- Right, yeah. Yeah, people know where it is. I should mention that the doctor can be a bit, uh, eccentric, at times. He knows what he's doing, though."

Eccentric?

Well, it didn't matter, in the end. Fujino was fairly sure she was okay, so the doctor didn't matter beyond being an excuse. Of course, she also failed to realise the source of her pain, and if it hadn't been for the incident with the bridge, Fujino wouldn't have found out what was wrong with her until it killed her. But Fujino had been fine on all the previous check-ups and would be having another soon, so even if Arisawa was wrong and the doctor's eccentricity was a failing, one of the doctors should catch something at some point.

"Thank you, Arisawa." Fujino smiled. "I hope we can meet again."

"Yeah." Arisawa replied. "I'll be going now, then. Bye."

"Farewell."

Fujino turned away from Arisawa, and felt around with her cane until she could find the door.

Yes, this would work. She'd make her way over in the morning. For now, she'd just need to get someone to help her with a phone. The train station had held onto her luggage and could deliver it, so all she needed to do is give them an address and a room number. She'd just need to make sure she had the copy of her medical records with her so she could bring them in to the clinic.

Hopefully, the delivery wouldn't take too long. It was too late right now to really do anything, so all she would be able to do until tomorrow was make sure everything was in order. Maybe work on learning to read braille. It was still a struggle, and while Reien was making allowances for her studies so far, it would be a lot easier if she could actually do her schoolwork without having someone read it to her or make a recording.

Or using her clairvoyance, but that had it's own issues. She didn't want to get to rely on it, anyway. On top of that, she didn't want people to know what kind of person she was. The more normal she acted, the better. And in this case, being normal meant adapting to being blind like a normal person.

Feeling the cane touching the door, Fujino stepped towards it, and felt around for the door knob. She took a moment to fumble around for it, before she found the handle. Maybe it was just Fujino's imagination, but it felt almost like it was a bit higher on the door than the ones in Reien...

Well, that hardly mattered for now. She just had to handle the hotel arrangements for tonight, and tomorrow, visit the doctor early and get to looking for Misaya.

Hopefully, she would be able to find her before too long.

* * *

The sunlight covered Fujino as she walked down the street, holding a plastic bag with the copy of her medical records by her side. Maybe she should have listened to Azaka and bought a purse to carry around important things, but she hadn't thought she would be in a scenario like this before.

Assuming the directions people had given her were accurate, then the clinic should be around here somewhere. She just had to hope that someone else passed by soon so they could point Fujino towards the right building.

"Excuse me?" A voice to her side asked. Fujino turned her head around to the speaker, which sounded like a girl smaller than her, to acknowledge it. "Are you looking for something?"

"Ah, yes." Fujino replied. "I'm trying to find my way to Kurosaki clinic, but-"

"It's right here." The girl replied, an annoyed tone to her voice. "There's a sign and everything. You were walking right past it."

Fujino tapped her cane on the ground. "Is it? I'm sorry, I lost my sight a few months ago."

There was a moment of silence. Fujino was making an assumption here, based on the somewhat rude tone the girl had taken a moment ago, but she was assuming the girl had just realised that she was getting annoyed at the blind person for not seeing something.

"Oh sh- I'm sorry, I didn't notice, I didn't mean to be rude." The girl frantically apologised.

"It's okay." Fujino replied, with a smile. "I just need to find the clinic to make an appointment. Or have a check-up if the doctor is free-"

"It's right here." The girl interrupted. "And old Goatface isn't doing anything. I'll go talk to him, just wait a second."

Footsteps sounded out, and Fujino took a moment before she could even think to react. The girl was running off to talk to the doctor for her? And she was supposed to just stand out in the street?

...Goatface?

That was certainly a mental image. What did the doctor look like that people compared him to a goat?

Perhaps she should't think about it. Whatever she came up with would probably be less impressive than what he actually ended up looking like, and if he was ever around at some point where Fujino used her clairvoyance, she would just be setting herself up for disappointment.

Footsteps drew close again, and Fujino stopped thinking about it as people came closer.

"You were looking for me?" The voice asked. "Kurosaki Isshin, the doctor. Can I help you?"

"Ah, hello." The girl replied. "Asagami Fujino. I'm from out of town. I was hoping I could have a quick check up?"

"Certainly." Kurosaki replied. "Come in, come in. Do you want my daughter to help you in?"

Daughter?

"I'm fine." Fujino replied. "Is your daughter here?"

"Hello." A small girl's voice replied, a different one from earlier. "Dad's clinic is part of the house, by the way. Since you can't tell. My sister Karin was out here a moment ago, but she's inside now."

Oh. That explained why the girl just ran in to get the doctor. Though using a nickname like that for her father was a bit disrespectful, wasn't it?

"I have some records with me." Fujino noted, holding up the plastic bag. "In case you needed to look at them."

"I'll make sure to look over those." Kurosaki replied. "Yuzu, show Asagami to the clinic proper. I'll go put on proper doctor garments."

A voice echoed out, from inside the house. "You can just wear what you're wearing now!"

"But Karin!" The doctor replied, his voice suddenly becoming childlike, as if complaining to a stern mother. "What's the point of being a doctor if I don't look the part?"

"Getting paid!"

"Ah, Masaki, our children are so mean..." Kurosaki said to himself.

Fujino blinked.

This must have been what Arisawa meant when she said that the doctor at the Kurosaki clinic was eccentric. She couldn't say she expected anything like this, if she was honest.

Turning towards where Fujino had last heard the daughter talk from, she gestured to the man.

"Is he... Always like this?"

"He tones it down when there's patients here." She replied, slightly to the left of where Fujino's eyes were pointed.

Oh.

Perhaps now was a good time to focus on what Fujino was here for.

"I'll follow you now." She nodded, making sure to twist her head to look at the girl. "Please, lead the way."

"Okay." The girl replied.

There was some footsteps, and Fujino noted two sets moving. One of them was probably Doctor Kurosaki, so she waited a second, for him to move out of the way.

It didn't take long after that for Fujino to follow Kurosaki Yuzu to whichever room was the right one, and Doctor Kurosaki was there a few moments later.

"Alright, Miss Asagami." He said, as Fujino heard some papers moving. "It says here that I should just send the bill to your family later?"

"Would you prefer cash?" Fujino asked. "I could get some quickly if you would like it."

"It's fine, it's fine." Kurosaki replied. "It's just a routine check-up, the payment isn't big enough to be worth making a big deal over how I'm getting it. Karin, hold this for me for a second."

"Alright." Said the girl that Fujino had first run into outside. "Uh... Asagami? Sorry about earlier. I didn't know you were... Well, sorry."

"It's alright." Fujino answered. "It's like you said, you didn't know."

"Alright, then." Doctor Kurosaki noted. "Asagami, do you have anything noteworthy to add? Any unexplained sensations or pain?"

The answer to that was obvious, though not for the reason anyone else would have thought. "No."

"Any explained pain?" He continued. "Any cuts or bruises? Anything that might be worse than you thought?"

"I don't think so." Fujino continued.

It wasn't an overly committal answer, which was the best she could really do. If there was an issue, it would raise questions as to why she hadn't noticed. By saying it like this, then maybe if there was an issue, she could just say she didn't think it was too important.

It was hardly like she could just confess to being unable to feel pain.

"I see..." Doctor Kurosaki noted.

Some kind of mechanical device started beeping around him, and the doctor made a startled sound at it.

"What is it?" Asagami asked. "Is there a problem?"

"No, it's nothing." Kurosaki replied. "Well, nothing to do with you. Hold on a second, I need to make a call real fast to check something. Stay here, I'll be right back."

A door opened a second later, and the doctor left the room.

"...Jeez, that guy." Sighed the girl who had been referred to as Karin earlier. "Leaving in the middle of a check up, what could be that important?"

"It's okay." Fujino stated, from her seat. "This is just a minor thing. If something is happening, it's probably more important than this."

"You don't need to make excuses for him." Grumbled the girl. "Jeez, everyone's been acting weird recently. First Ichigo starts getting all quiet around about when school ended, now this..."

"There has been a lot of weird things going on recently, actually." The other girl, Yuzu, noted. "Like the truck. Ichigo'd been acting weird for a while before now, anyway."

Weird things were going on here, too?

How strange. It was looking more people were noticing strange things around them all the time, more often. There had also been the oddities surrounding Misaya, too. And the oddity regarding that monster which had attacked Arisawa. Perhaps everything was related, to some degree?

Or maybe Fujino was jumping to conclusions. She really needed to know more, before concluding anything.

 **[X] Ask about the weird things that had been going on. Maybe there would be a common link.**  
 **[X] Ask if either of the two girls had seen Misaya. That was the important thing, more than anything.**


	5. Chapter 5

**[X] Ask if either of the two girls had seen Misaya. That was the important thing, more than anything.**

It wasn't any of Fujino's business if there had been some strange events going on recently. Though with that logic, Misaya going missing wasn't honestly her business either, but as far as Fujino knew, the oddities that had apparently occurred recently wasn't anything as bad as several people Misaya knew dying within a short timespan.

She was only here to look for Misaya to make sure she was okay. It wouldn't exactly be polite to just investigate everything that people found weird.

And with that in mind, with the medical examination still on pause, Fujino decided to ask a few question.

"Excuse me?" Fujino asked the two girls. "Pardon me for changing the subject, but a classmate of mine went missing recently, and there's a rumour going around that someone saw her going to Karakura Town. I don't suppose either of you two would have seen anyone from out of town recently?"

The two girls took a moment to reply. Fujino didn't bother trying to guess why, this time. It was probably the sudden topic change anyway, and if it was relevant to her, it'd come up when they did respond.

"I did pass by the train station a few days ago." Yuzu answered, after a moment. "I... Might have seen them? There was people leaving as I passed by. What did your friend look like?"

...Friend wasn't exactly accurate, but that was a conversation that didn't need to be had.

"Her names Ouji Misaya." Fujino explained. The rumour was that she was still wearing her uniform. A blue dress, white around the collar and cuffs, does down to the ankles? Her hair was like mine, but a lighter shade. Does that sound familiar?"

There was silence for some time after that.

This, in itself, was not unusual. Fujino had noticed it more since she was forced to rely on her hearing. The lack of visual cues meant that these pauses were more noticeable. Baring the usual sounds of breathing, footsteps, and any other background noise, there was usually moments in conversations where people took a moment to respond.

But that didn't mean it wasn't unnoticeable when a moment of silence dragged on for longer than a moment.

"Is there a problem, Yuzu?" The other girl, Karin, asked after a moment.

"...I did pass by the train station the other day, didn't I?" Yuzu replied, creeping confusion in her voice. "I thought I did, but now I can't remember anything about it."

"What do you mean, you can't remember?" Karin asked. "You definitely passed by. Even if you don't remember anyone you saw around there, you should at least remember that you went by, right?"

"I guess I just wasn't paying attention." Yuzu decided, after a moment. "Sorry, Asagami. Looks like I can't be of any help."

"That's fine." Fujino replied. She wasn't expecting much, regardless. She needed to ask to make sure, but she would have been surprised if it had been that easy to find a lead to Misaya's whereabouts.

Maybe she should return to the train station, Fujino mused, and ask around there. Someone around there might be able to help her.

"Can't remember anything?" Karin asked. "That's... Huh."

She went quiet after that, as if thinking about something, and the three of them waited in silence for a bit longer. Before anyone could offer a topic of conversation to interrupt the silence, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the building.

"Sorry about that." Came the voice of Doctor Kurosaki, after a moment. "I hope my daughters took care of you while I was gone, Asagami."

"It's not like we needed to do anything." Karin pointed out.

"Aw, you didn't complete the examination for me?" He asked, sounding almost hurt. "You've been watching me for so long, I would have thought-"

"Even if I was qualified, I wouldn't do your job for you." Karin grumbled back.

"So mean..." Doctor Kurosaki replied, sounding like a kicked puppy. "Well, if I still have to do work, then let's get to it."

* * *

Even if she didn't have any reason to suspect something was wrong, Asagami was still somewhat relieved when the check-up reached the conclusion, and Doctor Kurosaki informed her was fine.

And with that, Fujino had sorted out her cover. If she found Misaya, she'd be able to head right back without worrying about it, and the fact that she had sorted it out now meant that she could put all of her effort into finding the missing girl.

Hopefully, this part wouldn't take too long either. Between what had been happening at Reien and the strange monster she had encountered here in Karakura, Fujino was worried for Misaya.

That was the thought that the girl kept in mind, as she returned to the train station.

It was... Bothersome, walking through the crowd. People gave her space, at least, but as she walked around the station, Fujino found herself appreciating how open Reien was, most of the time. People bumped into her more than once here, and while they apologised immediately, it was somewhat startling.

Still, as the blind girl made her way through the station, she found an employee soon enough.

"Do you need anything, miss?" They said. Their voice was even, if somewhat stressed. If she had to guess, Fujino would have to guess that it was a male speaker, but it was difficult to tell.

"I was wondering if you had seen someone pass through in the last few days." Fujino replied. "A girl in a school uniform? Hair like mine, but a shade lighter? Her name's Ouji Misaya-"

"I don't recall seeing anyone like that." The employee replied. "How long ago would she have passed by?"

"Two days ago, I believe." Fujino replied. "Some time in the evening."

"I was on shift then." They continued. "And I didn't see her."

"Are you certain?" Fujino asked. "In that case, do you know who might-"

"If I didn't see her, I doubt anyone else did." The employee interrupted.

"I don't mean to offend." Fujino continued. "But it is possible you just didn't notice, if she didn't draw attention to herself. You may have-"

"Miss." The employee growled. "You're wasting my time. Get out of here."

Ah. Had she been too forward, there?

"My apologies." Fujino bowed. "I'll leave you to your work."

Well, that was of no help. A pity. Hopefully, Fujino could find another employee that would be able to lend her a hand in this matter. If the one here had been able to give her directions, that would be easier, but now she would have to find another while-

A chill went down Fujino's spine suddenly.

What was this sudden sense of foreboding?

In her life, Asagami Fujino had only been witness to a handful of supernatural phenomenon. She could see kilometres away from herself, and twist anything she saw to destruction. And with that in mind, when a sudden unexplained instinct awoke in her heart to beware, the fact that she followed it without question was to be expected.

Her mind's eye opened, and Fujino observed the train station from above.

Behind her, the employee- Definitely male- Seemed lost in thought. Around her, people were moving on, parting to give her space.

Flitting around the air around their heads was a small yellow being, it's form shifting as it flew in curves through the air. It left golden glitter in it's whimsical path, from the wings that twitched rapidly. Looking at it, the word "Fairy" came to mind relatively quickly. It looked almost like something out of a fairy tale.

It parted through the crowd and reached the employee, and slipped around behind his neck. The man stumbled, suddenly, and with her all-seeing mind's eye, Fujino saw as the man's own eyes lost focus for a second. Then, they stood, and looked around, as if confused.

That didn't bode well, Fujino noted. Was the creature the same sort of being as the one that had attacked the Arisawa girl yesterday? People were not reacting to it, so they clearly could not see it, and even if it didn't appear to have done much, it did give Fujino a bad feeling with how it had disappeared behind the man's back.

The creature emerged from behind it's victims head, and sprung upwards, making a beeline for Fujino.

Ah. So it was coming for her, now. Well, that settled it. Fujino was not willing to allow some magical creature come at her while she could not see it, and she did not wish to keep her clairvoyance active for much longer. Perhaps it was the difference in mindset pushing her to this conclusion, but...

Fujino let out a short breath, and began to mutter quietly enough that nobody else could hear her. Her sight focused on the fairy-like creature, and her power came to her.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it became a curse.

"Be-"

All of a sudden, a hand shot out to the side, striking at the yellow creature flitting through the air. It fell from the sky, and splattered against the ground, as if made from glass.

Her curse cut short, Fujino let her focus fade, to look at who had struck the creature.

Standing a few steps behind Fujino, looking confused at her own hand, as Arisawa Tatsuki. She seemed distracted as she looked around, as if still looking for something in the air around her.

Had she seen the being fluttering in the air? She had not seen the monster yesterday, and she seemed rather confused that she had hit anything when she had struck out, but she definitely acted against it.

Perhaps Fujino should talk to her, rather than simply standing and guessing.

Taking a moment to survey the area with her sight, ensuring that there was no more of the creature, Fujino shut her mind's eye and let the world fade to a numb darkness once again.

"Arisawa." Fujino noted, as she turned around. "How are you?"

"Hey, Asagami." The girl replied. "Did you sense anything around here? I thought I saw some kind of blur, but-"

"You got it." Fujino noted. "Perhaps we should speak away from the crowd, however..."

As it was, they probably had not said anything to give them away. Nobody would be listening in on them intentionally, and out of context, perhaps they could have been talking about a fast-moving insect. People would invent their own excuses for anything strange they heard. But as it was, talking about what had occurred risked someone putting something together, and Fujino had no intention of allowing anyone else to discover what kind of person she was.

"What are you doing around here, Arisawa?" Fujino asked, out of curiosity. "Are you taking a train?"

There was a moment of silence, after that.

"Well..." Arisawa began. "To be honest, I'm probably here for the same reason as you. I remembered you saying something about you looking for someone, and I didn't have anything better to do, so I thought I'd ask around."

Oh?

"That's very kind of you, Arisawa." Fujino noted. "I was having difficulties finding any leads for finding Ouji. Did you find anything?"

"Not really." Arisawa admitted. "Here, do you want to talk outside?"

"I'll lead the way." Fujino noted. "It'll be easier. People make space for the girl with a walking stick."

"I see..." Arisawa noted. Fujino took a moment to remember where the exit was, tapped the ground with her cane, and began walking.

It was a silent walk on the path out, but before long, the two of them were outside again, away from the crowd.

"So what was that?" Arisawa asked suddenly. "Was there actually something in the air I hit? I thought I was imagining things."

"You did strike against something." Fujino replied. "Some kind of... fairy-like creature, I think. It-"

Fujino stopped speaking suddenly, as a thought occurred to her.

Wasn't there some kind of rumour in Reien Academy, not long ago? Fujino didn't pay rumours much mind, but she could have sworn she had heard mention of fairies from her classmates. Perhaps there was truth to those rumours after all?

"What is it?" Arisawa asked, suddenly concerned.

"Nothing immediate." Fujino assured her. "I was merely remembering something. Whatever that thing was might have had some kind of connection to Misaya."

"Is that so?" The other girl asked. "Well, looks like I just involved myself in something weird... Did you find anything out in the train station?"

"Unfortunately not." Fujino replied. "The only employee I asked didn't recall seeing Misaya. The fairy thing did go after him, though. I noticed them stumble when it found their neck, and then he appeared confused as it came for me"

Arisawa let out a sigh. "Definitely something strange going on. Though, why does this feel..."

She trailed off suddenly, and a moment passed, before Fujino spoke. "Is there something wrong, Arisawa?"

"I'm not sure..." She replied. "I thought I saw something there, but I'm not sure. Might be something around here, or might not."

...Well, that didn't sound too good. Perhaps it was nothing, but Fujino had already encountered two supernatural beings in two days in this town, and given that it was starting to look like there was some kind of connection to Misaya...

Taking a breath, Fujino prepared to open her mind's eye once again-

 **[X] -And expanded her sight once again, to see what may lurk out of sight, invisible or otherwise.**  
 **[X] -But was interrupted by a meek voice, and the sound of someone stepping into view.**


	6. Chapter 6

**[X] -But was interrupted by a meek voice, and the sound of someone stepping into view.**

"Hello." The words were spoken softly, enough that it took some effort to listen to the speaker. "Are you Asagami Fujino?"

Fujino didn't know who that voice belonged to, and they apparently knew who she was. That could be harmless, but given the context, there was the chance of something strange happening here.

"I'm afraid you have me at a disadvantage." Asagami replied. "Who are you?"

"Tsumugiya Ururu." The speaker continued. Asagami was putting together what she could from the sound of the voice. Female, sounded young. "Can I talk to you in private?"

That was not something that Fujino was going to do. Arisawa had seen something strange, and as far as Fujino knew, the girl was related somehow. And the last time she had been alone with another supernatural person had not been a pleasant memory for Fujino, to say the least.

"Arisawa, do you know who this is?" Fujino asked.

The other girl took a moment to reply. "I dunno. Little girl. Has a logo for some shop on her shirt. Hands behind her back for some reason."

"No reason." The meek voice interjected.

And that was rather suspicious as well, wasn't it? Especially for someone who had emerged right as Arisawa had possibly seen something, right after her possibly seeing something had her very much noticing one of the fairy creatures.

But on the other hand, if this girl was somehow related, would she really say something that blatantly suspicious?

"Why do you want to speak to me alone?" Fujino tried. "Is there a reason you don't want Arisawa to be around for the conversation?"

"It's a secret." Tsumugiya replied. "One that she shouldn't hear."

Oh.

What secrets was she talking about? Fujino could think of a few that she had, but if a stranger knew anything about her ESP or her murders, then Fujino would have a lot of things to worry about. And if those weren't what she was talking about, then Asagami mentioning her ESP would create a few problems as well. Arisawa was already one person too many.

"That doesn't answer my question." Asagami stated, after a moment. "I don't particularly mind if Arisawa knows, if that makes things simpler."

There was a moment of silence, before the girl responded again.

"Okay." She decided, after a moment. "There is someone who wants to talk to you about your ESPer powers."

That had worked out well, then. It was a secret which Arisawa already knew, and not a secret where Asagami's opinion was irrelevant. That still did leave one of the more worrisome questions, though.

"How did you know about that?" Fujino asked. "I don't exactly advertise it."

"The person who wants to talk to you told me." Tsumugiya replied. "I don't know how he found out."

That was concerning, Fujino had to admit. There was a few possibilities that Fujino could think of, and none of them were ones she was comfortable with. Somehow, the least worrisome possibility was that this was a complete stranger. Otherwise, the other two options where the man who knew that Asagami Fujino was a murderer, and the mysterious man who had introduced himself as a Magus.

If Minato Keita was seeking her out, then Asagami Fujino was at a loss as to what to do about it. He knew too much about her, and after what he had done, Asagami wasn't too sure she'd be able to resist the temptation to simply kill him if it looked like he was spreading around any of her abnormalities. And the man who had introduced himself as Araya Souren was involved in the supernatural, enough to casually refer to himself as a Magus to someone he did not know while healing them. The idea of someone that deeply involved in the supernatural seeking her out was disturbing, to some degree.

"Oh, and if Arisawa is allowed to know." Tsumugiya spoke up. "This is what I'm holding."

Silence hung in the air, for a moment.

"Arisawa?" Asagami asked.

"I don't..." The girl trailed off for a moment. "Oh. It's one of those invisible fairy things, isn't it?"

"Yes." Tsumugiya answered. "I'm taking it to Urahara."

"I presume he's the one who wants to speak with me?" Fujino guessed.

"Yes."

Well, that answered that, then. It was a complete stranger with the ability to identify ESPers and have some interest in the supernatural. At the very least, the fairy thing had to be taken to him, so it was unlikely he had anything to do with them already.

"Do you know what he wants to talk to me about?" Fujino asked.

"No."

"Wait, Urahara? Isn't that the name of the old candy store?" Arisawa asked, suddenly.

"Yes." The girl replied. "Are you coming as well?"

"I don't see any reason why not." Arisawa replied. "Asagami and I were in the middle of something, and if you're doing something with that fairy thing, I'll want to know about it."

"Okay." The girl said. "Follow me."

There was the sound of footsteps, and Fujino took a moment to feel in front of her with her cane, before she followed the sound.

* * *

"I'm back." Tsumugiya spoke up as she opened a door. Fujino took a moment to swing around with her cane, feeling where the edges of the doorway where, before she stepped in. "I found the ESPer."

"Oi, keep it down." A boyish voice interrupts. "What if we had customers and you came in here talking about ESP And stuff?"

Fujino took a few steps into the building, and heard Arisawa enter behind her.

"And she's not alone." The boy's voice continued. "I'm pretty sure she was supposed to come alone-"

"She's with me." Asagami interrupted. "I insisted."

"Give her a break, Jinta." Another voice interrupted. "She's doing fine."

The boy grumbled.

"Speaking of which, Ururu, what've you got there?"

"Some form of familiar." The girl replied. "It was circling around the ESPer and came at me when it saw me."

"Well, go show it to Tessai." The man told her. "I'll take a look at it once I've dealt with our guests, but he can get started without me if he wants."

There was the sound of footsteps as Tsumugiya walked away, and a moment later, the man started talking again.

"Alright, then, Asagami." He continued. "And..."

"Arisawa Tatsuki." The other girl introduced herself. "I presume you're Urahara?"

"That's me." The man replied.

"How did you know I was an ESPer?" Asagami asked, suddenly. "Forgive me for being blunt, but I would rather prefer to keep that a secret."

"The supernatural calls to the supernatural." Urahara answered. "Honestly, I'm the least of your concerns here. Karakura Town is something of a hotspot when it comes to Hollows, so that'd be your biggest problem."

"Hollow?" Asked Arisawa. "Is that the small invisible thing, or the big invisible thing?"

"If the small one is the familiar Ururu caught, then no, that's not a Hollow." Urahara replied. "I'm not sure what it is, beyond it looking like some Magus made it. The bigger one was probably a Hollow. They've got a..."

He trailed off for a moment. "Well, I'm not sure what good describing a Hollow would be, for someone who can't see them and someone who's blind. They're ghosts, basically. Dead souls who couldn't move on and went mad from the emptiness of it, turned into monsters. That's a fairly short version, but that's the gist of it."

A moment passed, as the meaning dawned on Asagami.

The monster that she had seen, when she first arrived and encountered Arisawa, that was a Hollow, wasn't it? And if it was a ghost, then it had been a person.

So she'd murdered someone again, hadn't she?

She remembered it clearly, and she remembered the joy she'd felt as the monster died and faded away. She'd killed something that had been a person, and and had smiled as she did it.

No, there was more to it than that. It was a monster when she encountered it. It had attacked Arisawa. Fujino hadn't known it was human, but even if she had, would that have changed anything? She still would have killed it to save Arisawa. The act itself wasn't any more wrong, just that Fujino had enjoyed it, and she already knew that she was a murderer who enjoyed taking lives. This shouldn't change anything.

"I see..." Asagami continued, keeping her voice level. The brief moment of panic had passed. There was no reason to think that this made things any worse. That had been a kneejerk reaction, Fujino wasn't any worse a person for what had happened yesterday then she was the day before that.

It occurred to her that her grip on her cane had tightened reflexively while she was lost in though, and it took Asagami a moment to relax her fingers.

"The problem with Hollows is, they're soul eaters." Urahara continued. "They're all empty inside and try to fill themselves with souls, instinctively. And an ESPer? They're something of a beacon to those kinds of instincts. So that's why I called you here, Asagami. To give you a warning."

Fujino frowned. "I'm... A beacon, to Hollows?"

"Moreso when you actually use any ESP." Urahara replied. "But yeah. You probably could've gone the rest of your life without encountering a Hollow, but Karakura Town's the kind of place where a ghost can end up lingering easily, so we've got a bit of a problem with them."

"Is that why weird stuff's been happening for the last few months?" Arisawa asked. "Have there been a bunch of Hollows around recently?"

"I dunno." Urahara told her. "Do I look like I've got any reason to keep an eye on you? I'm letting Assagami know because the alternative is that a teenage girl wanders around with no clue that she's Hollow bait and I get yelled at for not helping. You're a normal person, so you don't have that problem."

Arisawa was silent for a moment after that, as if lost in thought.

"But anyway, Asagami." Urahara continued. "I dunno why you've come to Karakura Town, but I'd recommend leaving as soon as possible. Now, even. Hollows don't often wander out of Karakura Town, given what kind of place this town is, so it's probably in your best interest to get out."

"I'm afraid I can't do that." Asagami replied. "There's someone I'm looking for, here. I know she's in Karakura Town somewhere, or at least was recently. I can't go anywhere without finding her."

There was silence in the room, before Urahara replied.

"I'm not gonna ask questions." He noted. "But you should think, for yourself. Can your ESP keep you safe from monsters who can smash down buildings?"

"It can." Fujino replied. She'd already beaten one Hollow.

"Then go ahead." Urahara decided. "Don't feel bad about what happens to any of the Hollows, by the way. It's a mercy to kill them, more than anything. Don't feel bad just because they used to be alive, existing as a Hollow is a curse."

Oh. That made it a bit easier to kill them, then, if it's not a bad thing to do.

"Arisawa, though, I'd say that you should-"

"I'm not going to avoid Asagami just because she's monster bait." Tatsuki interrupted him. "I've lived in this place for years, and if there's been weird stuff going on in my life already because of these Hollows, I'm not going to just ignore them and pretend the don't exist."

"Are you sure about that?" Urahara asked. "You can't even see them, and you've got a broken arm. You really wanna be around when they come crawling around and start lunging at any easy meal?"

"Yes."

The silence hung in the air for a moment, and Fujino was almost worried about the tense atmosphere that had come across the place, suddenly.

"...Well, alright then." Urahara decided, eventually. "Your life, I suppose. If it makes you feel better, it'll get easier to see them the more you're around the supernatural. Semi-transparent stuff is good enough for punching them in the face, if you know how to fight."

"It's fine." Asagami interrupted. "I can watch her. She's only really in danger when around me, isn't she?"

"That's a fair point." Urahara admitted. "What about you, Arisawa? Wanna keep following Asagami and rely on her while you're useless?"

That did not sound like the wording of someone who had no stakes in the decision that Arisawa made.

"What's it to you?" Arisawa asked, an edge in her voice.

"I think I might be able to be of some use." He continued. "Again, people'll yell at me if I just let let a teenage girl stay around danger without at least helping out. So, why don't I take a look at that arm of yours?"

"What do you mean?" Arisawa asked.

"I'm something of a magician, y'know." Urahara explained. "Not a specialised healer, but I know enough to fix a broken arm that's been recovering a while. Nobody'll question it, either. I can make sure of that."

"...Really?" Arisawa asked. "That's... That'd help a bunch. It'd be nice to have it working properly again."

"I should warn you, though, it won't make too much of a difference." Urahara advised. "There's only so much a human can do against a Hollow. It'll help a bit if you need to fight one off long enough for the ESPer to do whatever she does."

"Alright, then." Arisawa noted. "Is this gonna take long?"

"Maybe a while." Urahara replied. "I'll want to have a good look at it, and take the time to make sure it heals up properly. Speaking of which, Asagami, I've got nothing else to talk to you about. If you wanna leave, feel free."

"I see." Fujino noted. "Thank you for the warning, then. And for the help you are providing for Arisawa."

Turning to leave, Fujino took a moment to think about what to do next.

 **[X] Well, there was nothing for it but to get back to looking for Misaya. Perhaps she should try checking around other hotels?**  
 **[X] On second thought, perhaps she should stay a while. Perhaps she'd be allowed to see if anyone found out anything about the fairy.**


	7. Chapter 7

**[X] On second thought, perhaps she should stay a while. Perhaps she'd be allowed to see if anyone found out anything about the fairy.**

"Urahara?" Fujino asked, turning away from the door again to the general direction she had heard the man speaking in. "You said that someone was having a look at the fairy creature that the girl had stumbled across, didn't you?"

"I told her to pass it on to Tessai, yes." Urahara confirmed. "Curious?"

"I would like to know more about it, yes." Fujino admitted. "Mysteries are rather annoying, I find, and I'd rather know what it is than let it be a surprise later."

"Alright, then." Urahara replied. "I'll let Tessai know you're curious, and tell him to send Ururu to get you soon."

"Thank you." Fujino bowed, slightly. "I will remain here in the meantime."

"Feel free to browse the merchandise." Urahara suggested, in an offhand tone. Fujino took a moment to realise what he had said, but before she could remind him of her blindness, he had started talking again. "Arisawa, follow me."

There was footsteps, and a door opened. More footsteps, a door closed. Someone muttered something on the other side of the door that Fujino didn't catch.

"In case it wasn't obvious." A boyish voice from nearby spoke up suddenly. "He wasn't being serious. He doesn't forget things, he just thinks he's funnier than he is."

Oh?

"I see." Fujino noted. "Urahara called you Jinta, didn't he? Is that what everyone calls you, or would you prefer a stranger use something more formal?"

"I don't care." He brushed off. "Call me Hanakari if it bothers you to be informal, but it's just a name."

"Understood." Fujino noted. Being formal would be more comfortable for her, with a stranger, so given the choice... "While I'm here, what merchandise does Urahara sell, Hanakari?"

"Here? Candy." The boy replied. There was the sound of a broom hitting the floor, and some footsteps. "Break time. But anyway, the supernatural stock's in the back, but there's probably not anything there for you. 'Less your ESP lets you leave the flesh and walk around as a spiritual body or something."

"Can ESP do that?" Fujino asked. She had only ever encountered ESP that had something to do with sight, be it her clairvoyance, her bending, or Shiki's...

Well, the terrifying power to kill anything, according to Shiki, had been based on her eyes seeing the flaws in existence. That fit the pattern.

"I dunno." Hanakari replied. "You're the only one I've met. Wouldn't be surprised, though. I've heard it can be done by some people and I've given up trying to figure out what kind of supernatural person can do what kind of supernatural thing. It'll give you a headache if you try to pay attention."

That was a rather simple way of looking at things, Fujino thought. But at the end of the day, it wasn't too different from her own stance of things, was it? She never went out of her way to figure out how her powers worked, or how other ESPers worked. Partially because, until now, the only way Fujino could ask about the supernatural would be to approach Ryougi Shiki, and that was not an option. But she had no interest in it regardless, hasn't she?

There was silence for a long time in the room, before Hanakari talked again.

"So." He began. "How important is that person you're looking for?"

Oh? How did he-

Right, he was right there while Fujino had been talking with Urahara, he would have overheard.

"She's important." Asagami replied simply.

There was silence for another long moment, before Hanakari spoke with a suspicious tone. "Who is she to you, anyway?"

"The student council president at my school." Fujino replied. "She's a very important member of the community."

"And you know her well?" Hanakari replied. "It doesn't sound like she's a friend, or anything."

"Why does it matter to you?" Asagami asked. "It's not as if it effects you, does it?"

"I was curious as to what kind of person would inspire you to stick around in a town full of Hollows even after knowing you're like candy to them." He replied. "And from what I'm hearing, it's not about the person at all. You're just an idiot."

Fujino paused. "...Excuse me?"

"If she was someone you talked to a bunch, you would've called her a friend or something." Hanakari noted. "Instead you said she was important the community. The community ain't important, if you're the one risking your life. If she's not someone important to you, specifically, then you should just leave and be safe. Therefore, idiot."

"I suspect that this conversation isn't going to benefit either of us." Asagami declared. "Please stop talking."

The rude boy huffed, but didn't try to argue with her.

He was right, on some level, but he didn't need to be so rude about it. It was true that Fujino didn't know Misaya that well. Technically speaking, it was likely that the girl would think Fujino herself was being overly familiar if she referred to her as Misaya in conversation. But it wasn't entirely about Misaya, Fujino had to admit.

Ouji Misaya was a girl who had lost two people close to her in so short a time frame, when just one death was enough to weigh heavily on a person. If Fujino could make a difference by interfering, then that was the right thing to do. Just because the two girls didn't know each other that well didn't change anything. Going out of her way to help someone through a difficult time, even with the amount of effort it was taking Asagami just to find her, that was just something that a good person would do.

Asagami Fujino was not a good person. She was a murderer who killed several people and enjoyed every second of it. At least one had done nothing to deserve it. Perhaps a second. Someone who took pleasure in the act of killing, to the point where a knife to her throat put a smile on her face, someone like them could not be a good person. But by acting as one, it would at least be proof that it was alright for Fujino to live, that she was capable of good.

The boy had been insulting, but his argument had merit. A normal person would not consider going this far for someone who they barely knew. Someone who would do such a thing could be accurately described as an idiot, perhaps, but accepting that was not going to change Fujino's outlook.

There was the sound of a door opening nearby, and Fujino stopped her train of thought to pay attention to whoever was walking through.

"Asagami?" Asked the voice of Tsumugiya, the small girl. "Tessai is looking at the familiar, and is ready to see you. Do you need assistance?"

"Just let me know when to turn to a door." Fujino replied, walking in the girl's direction. Her cane hit something solid in front of her somewhat, and feeling around, Fujino determined that there was a shelf of some sort there. Quickly finding a route around it, Fujino heard Tsumugiya move out of the way as she reached the door.

"He's in the basement." Tsumugiya advised her. "Not the training room, before that. There's stairs to your left, and it's through the door beneath them."

"Thank you." Fujino replied, as she started making her way towards said location.

Getting there took some difficulty, but not any more than stairs usually gave her. The door's handle was placed oddly high, but that only took a second to resolve.

"Excuse me?" Fujino asked as she stepped into the room.

"Ah, Asagami." A man's voice responded. "Tsukabishi Tessai, at your service. Kisuke tells me that you wanted to know about the familiar."

Kisuke must be Urahara's first name, Fujino noted to herself, as she nodded.

"It did come after me." She confirmed. "And I'm not entirely sure what a familiar is, anyway."

Tsukabishi paused, for a moment. "This might be something of a lecture, Asagami." He warned. "You may want to take a seat. There's one to your left."

Taking a step forward and closing the door behind her, Fujino took a moment to find the seat, and sit down.

"I'll try to keep this simple." Tsukabishi continued. "I've been on the receiving end of these lectures before. They can be painful."

"I don't mind." Asagami replied. "I'm planning to stay here until Urahara finishes fixing Arisawa's arm anyway. Take your time."

There was a moment of silence, followed by the sound of Tsukabishi clearing his throat.

"As ground work." He began. "I should discuss what Fairies are. Technically, there are a few beings in this world that would fall under that label, but I am sure you'll find the relevant description familiar. Small, flighty, possessing the ability to escape the perception of a normal human's eye, with a faint glow to them?"

Fujino nodded. There wasn't much to say, since it was obvious that this was a description of the being that Tsumugiya had caught and taken to this place.

"Moving on, and to be brief, we have familiars. Those with the right blend of supernatural ability can create a pact with a living being, or replicate one with their abilities for this purpose, to link their mind to it, control it, and give it orders."

"So this is what the fairy is?" Fujino asked. "Something that made a pact?"

"Not quiet." Tsukabishi continued. "I had thought so at first, but the creature began to degrade as I observed it. As far as I can tell, it is an apparition, formed from spirit energy to match a memory of one who had encountered a spirit."

"I'm not sure if I fully understand that." Fujino admitted. "Matching a memory? As in, someone is recreating something they had seen before?"

"It's complicated." The man warned. "Think of it as... Did your parents ever own a set of cookie cutters? That wouldn't be an inaccurate comparison. It's like you took the outline of a dog, or a small man, and put it in cookie dough to shape it, before baking it."

"I see." Fujino noted.

"This might not have been all too important." Tsukabishi admitted. "So to keep this focused somewhat, think of it like a puppet. Someone carved a fairy-shaped familiar, with enough skill in the tools to replicate the abilities of a fairy, while with enough sloppy craftsmanship that it was degrading at my examination. If that was an intentional feature or a triggered failsafe, and decent magician could have dissolved it well before I got any useful information out of it."

"So you did get some information out of it?" Fujino asked.

"I've determined it's purpose, at least." He confirmed. "It appears to be some form of memory eater."

"What?" Fujino asked. "I mean, memory eater? As in, it consumes memories? What effect would that even have on a person?"

"Removal of memories." He explained. "And the storage of them, it would seem. Perhaps more, but that would require another look to confirm. As far as I can tell, the fairies exist as a method of suppressing information. I'd put money on some kind of link, between whatever you were doing when you first encountered one, and the fact that it came for you."

What she was first doing? Fujino was looking for Misaya at a train station, at that time.

Which confirmed the theory that Fujino had, then. The rumour of fairy-like creatures in Reien before Misaya disappears, and then fairy-like creatures attempt to consume memories that belonged to people looking for Misaya.

And as a matter of fact, hadn't that girl in the doctor's clinic have a problem trying to remember passing by the train station around the time Misaya was likely to have passed by?

One thing was chance, and two was coincidence. Three different potentially connected links to these creatures and Misaya?

It could still very much be a coincidence, but at this point, it was for the best to assume that the link was there.

So, from there, the question was raised. What did that mean?

Was Misaya somehow the one making the creatures? Did she not want to be found, for whatever reason?

Or, as an alternative, were the creatures the work of someone trying to keep Misaya from being found?

That second possibility was a frightening one, Fujino thought to herself. There weren't many implications to the idea that invisible creatures had worked to keep Misaya away from anyone who would look for her, right after two people she cared about died within such a short time period.

She needed to look into this further, for Misaya's sake.

But before she could do that...

"If they can eat memories, then what's stopping it from finding me while I sleep?" Fujino asked. "I mean, it isn't as if I have any abilities that would keep me safe at night. Or any way to tell when they're coming when I'm not using my ESP, for that matter."

Tsukabichi was silent for a long time, before he gave his reply.

"Perhaps you don't have any outright powers that would defend you automatically." He began. "But people who possess supernatural abilities also have a habit of resisting supernatural abilities. Not complete immunity, but resistance. And any sort of memory effect has to overpower the target's spirit to work. It may come down to how powerful your ESP is. If you have enough potential, it could be that you would resist long enough for the disturbed energy within you to make you wake up. Otherwise, I could look into alternate solutions."

A matter of how powerful her ESP was?

If only Fujino had a benchmark to compare herself to, so she would know what powerful looked like for an ESPer. She could ask Tsukabichi, but information regarding her supernatural powers wasn't exactly something she wanted to give out easily. Especially one so closely linked to her murders.

Well, perhaps she was overly defensive there. She had tried to look into the murders herself, after the rumour spread that she might be connected to them, so she could hear the official statement. The bus driver's death was written off as a freak accident, with no information being shared that could link it to telekinesis if you knew it was a possibility, and while Fujino's kills were rather distinctive, the public were only told that the limbs were mangled.

As weird as it was to think, Fujino was hardly the only killed to leave mangled limbs in Mifune City. Which, now that she did think about it, was actually rather worrisome. What was going on behind the scenes there?

Well, that hardly mattered for now. What did matter was, as far as Fujino could tell, there wasn't a distinction in the public statements on her murders and the other murders, ones she had alibi's for, that any could be proven to be hers. The only thing that Fujino was giving away with this answer was that she had been somewhere on a certain night, and anyone could look into her recent records to find that out.

"I might have destroyed a bridge once." Fujino admitted, suddenly feeling embarrassed at the confession. "Nobody got hurt except me. It was, um, thirteen kilometres long. I'm not sure how that compares to most ESPers, but if you know anything, that might help determine how much power I have."

Tsukabichi didn't reply at first. As time passed, Fujino started to get worried.

"I hadn't planned on destroying the bridge." She commented.

"I am not judging." Tsukabichi answered a moment later. "I don't know the circumstances. I just... Don't think you have anything to worry about, Asagami."

"That is a relief." Fujino replied, trying not to think about how that was confirmation that she was stronger than most. Which, looking back, would probably explain Tsukabichi's silence. "Though, what about Arisawa? She had noticed and stopped the creature, and was there when a second one came for me. Would she be at risk?"

"That is fairly likely." Tsukabichi replied, his voice sounding distracted still. "I'll have to talk to Kisuke, after he is done with her. Maybe the two of you should wait until we find some kind of solution for that before you leave. Apologies for keeping you here for so long, as a side note."

"It's not a problem." Fujino replied.

"Speaking of which, Kisuke should be done soon. Is there anything else you wanted to talk about, or would you rather wait for them upstairs?"

"Perhaps we should go upstairs." Fujino answered, as she stood up again. Reaching around with her cane, she took a moment to identify where the door and door handle were, and moved towards it.

 **In the time in which Urahara and Tsukabishi are talking amongst themselves, Tatsuki and Fujino have a moment to talk as well. What do they focus on?**

 **[X] The memory consuming fairies, and if Arisawa has noticed anyone around her forgetting things recently.**  
 **[X] Hollows, dead souls, and the fact that Karakura Town has more ghosts than most places, apparently.**


	8. Chapter 8

**[X] The memory consuming fairies, and if Arisawa has noticed anyone around her forgetting things recently.**

Even if Tsukabichi said that Urahara was almost done with Arisawa, he and Fujino still ended up waiting for some time before the other two returned to the entrance of the store. The children who were around earlier weren't anymore, but from the lack of comment or apparent concern on Tsukabichi's part, it probably wasn't important. Maybe they had gone to play outside somewhere.

The wait went on for some time, before Tsukabichi spoke up.

"I don't suppose you'd like to purchase anything?" He asked. "We don't have anything for ESPers specifically in our stock, but we do also sell candy."

"I don't have any money on me right now." Fujino replied. "Sorry."

"Understandable." Tsukabichi accepted the answer, before the room fell into silence again.

Eventually, Fujino heard the footsteps, and before long, Arisawa and Urahara returned.

"And we're done." Urahara mentioned. "If Arisawa keeps following Asagami around and runs into any more Hollows, she'll be able to lend a second hand, now."

"Damn straight." Arisawa replied, a joyful tone to her voice. "And you're sure nobody's gonna comment on this?"

"As I've explained a hundred times, we have safeguards for this kind of thing. Nobody's gonna think it's strange. Not unless they were already involved in the supernatural."

"Kisuke." Tsukabichi spoke up, suddenly. "Before we send the girls off, there's another problem."

"Of course there is." Urahara sighed.

"The Familiar is a recreation of a proper Fairy. It retains a memory-consuming ability. Asagami has enough spiritual power to be resistant, but Arisawa does not."

"Hold on." Arisawa interrupted. "It does what now?"

"Devours memories." Tsukabichi explained. "If it gets on you, it would be able to take your memories of any certain thing, preventing you from remembering anything it takes."

"...I see the problem." Arisawa noted. "How do we avoid this problem? I mean, I can barely see them at the best of time, and even if I try really hard to avoid them, I have to sleep sometime."

"I can probably find something in the back which can help you." Urahara noted. "Gimme a bit, I'll see if I can find something. Tessai, come give me a hand."

"We'll try not to take too long." Tsukabichi assured the two girls. "Sorry for keeping you."

There was footsteps again, which was presumably Tsukabichi and Urahara leaving the room, before Arisawa started talking.

"...Well this seems complicated." She noted. "Ghost monsters, magic candy sellers, fairy's that eat memories..."

"It is strange, yes." Fujino nodded. "From what I understand, there's someone controlling the fairies that are trying to keep things hidden."

"Any idea what?" Arisawa asked.

Asagami took a moment to think about how to describe her theory to Arisawa.

"...I suspect it might be relating to why I'm here." Asagami began. "Which would explain why they came after me. I think they have something to do with the girl I'm looking for, Misaya. There was talk of a rumour about fairies a little bit before she went missing, and now they're here when I look for her."

"So what you're saying is, it's really important I figure out some way of not forgetting the last few days ever happened." Arisawa noted.

"I sincerely hope so." Fujino noted. "Whatever the reason, the fairies do seem to be trying to keep people from finding Misaya. One of the girls at the doctor's clinic earlier mentioned that they passed by the train station around the time Misaya would have arrived, but then couldn't remember anything about it. For all we know, she saw Misaya and the fairies got her."

"For all we know, I saw Misaya and the fairies got me." Arisawa muttered. "Well, this just got creepy."

"At the very least, if this is related to Misaya, then you won't have to worry about it for very long." Asagami pointed out. "If it's something following her, then once she leaves, the fairies will as well."

And if Misaya is responsible for the fairies, then once she leaves, they obviously won't be around here any more. But that would take a while for Fujino to explain. She really should tell Arisawa everything, if Arisawa was dead set on helping her, but it was likely to be an explanation that took a while, and right now, Urahara and Tsukabichi could come back and interrupt the conversation at any second. So for now, she may as well keep it simple.

A moment passed, before Fujino noticed that Arisawa had stopped talking.

"Is there a problem, Arisawa?" Fujino asked.

"...Maybe it's nothing." She began. "But a while ago, back on the last day of school before break? A few friends of mine were acting weird, and were looking at a desk and classmate they barely knew like there was something weird. They didn't say anything, but they seemed confused. And Orhime's out of the town for now and Ichigo's been avoiding me since then so I don't know for sure, but..."

"...You think there's something strange going on." Fujino finished. "You think that something similar to this happened. Something to do with memories."

It didn't take a genius to connect what they were talking about to what Arisawa's sudden train of thought had been sparked by, after all.

"I might be wrong." Arisawa admitted. "And I should really corner Ichigo later to find out for sure. But this has gotten me thinking anyway. These fairy things, they aren't the only things that can erase memories, are they? If they were, then why would Hats and Clogs think he can do something about it?"

"Are you referring to Urahara or Tsukabichi when you call them Hats and Clogs?"

"Er... Urahara. My bad." Arisawa apologised.

"That... Is a fair point, though." Fujino admitted.

"I'm going to have to look into this as well." Arisawa muttered under her breath. "Well, maybe later. I've got no idea where Ichigo might be this time of day. If we're looking for that friend of yours, maybe we can keep an eye out for him as well."

"Perhaps." Fujino noted. "How late is it, anyway?"

"Just after lunch, around now." Arisawa noted. "Did you eat anything before we met at the train station? I could buy something for you if you haven't eaten yet."

"I'm good, Arisawa." Fujino replied. "Don't waste anything on me. I'm not hungry anyway."

Before Arisawa could reply, Fujino heard footsteps coming towards them.

"I think Urahara's found something." She noted, just as a door opened.

"Here we go." Said the man himself. "Got something for you, Arisawa."

Arisawa moved, but then suddenly stopped.

"Cash up front." Urahara asked.

"Wait, since when am I paying for this?" Arisawa asked.

"Fixing your arm was on the house." Urahara replied. "This isn't. Surely a girl like you's got some money, right?"

"Are you seriously going to make me pay for the right of not forgetting everything?"

"Look, I'm not running a charity." Urahara began. "If I just let anyone come in and take stuff for free, the small children that work here would starve. Think of the children, Arisawa."

Arisawa sighed. "Fine. How much?"

"How much do you have on you?"

"...Is this price going to vary depending on how much money I am currently carrying?" Arisawa asked.

"I highly doubt you can pay the full price, so I'll give you the discount required to be a decent human being. How much?"

There was a grumbling sound from Arisawa, before she started muttering again. "Here, just take everything. Happy?"

"Very much so." Urahara replied. "Here, catch."

There was the faint sound of something being thrown, and then something being caught.

"A pill a day keeps the fairies away." Urahara noted. "Take one on your way out, take one every morning, and... I'd say take an extra before you go to bed after that, just to be on the safe side. Too much time over the twenty four hour mark might be risking it."

"Thanks." Arisawa grumbled. "I appreciated the chance to be relevant, and not be mindwiped and have to sit this out. Wish that didn't cost me."

"And I wish I was getting more out of you than I was losing for this discount." Urahara replied. "We're all disappointed in this exchange."

"I feel like you weren't like this as much when we came in." Arisawa noted. "I feel like you got less serious once you finished lecturing Asagami."

"Probably, yeah." Urahara agreed. "Anyway, neither of you have any more money, so you shouldn't have any more business here, at this point. Bye. Have fun. Try not to break your arm again."

"Thank you again, for the warning." Asagami bowed. "I appreciate knowing more about what is going on, now."

"Yeah, thanks." Arisawa replied. She started walking out, and Fujino followed, a moment later. Tsukabichi said his farewell from within the store, and Fujino waved back, as she felt around to make sure she was walking through the door, as opposed to into the wall.

"Well, that's over." Arisawa noted. "We were in there for a while."

"It wasn't that long." Fujino replied.

"Well it was a long time when it was just some old guy standing around looking at your arm." Arisawa replied. "Didn't help that it took forever before anything even happened. Didn't notice a difference until pretty much the end, I was starting to think I was wasting my time."

"That's unfortunate." Fujino admitted.

The two walked off for a bit, getting some distance from the store. Fujino heard Arisawa swallowing something, likely the pill that Urahara had prescribed.

"This has been a day." Arisawa sighed. "I start out bored and decide to lend a hand because, hey, it's not like I'm doing anything. Now I'm finding out about memory eaters and there's a decent chance that people have been messing with memories around this place for a while now."

"That does seem like it would be worrisome." Fujino agreed.

"One thing at a time, though." Arisawa decided. "Your friend has those fairy things following her, right? We should figure out what that's about, and figure out how to make it stop."

Fujino took a moment to think about it, before deciding that now was probably a good time to explain more about the situation to Arisawa.

"It may be more complicated than that." Fujino replied. "I honestly don't know enough about the situation to rule anything out, so there's a lot of possibilities. For all we know, it could be Misaya herself controlling the fairies, and trying to keep hidden.

"...Huh." Arisawa reacted. "Your think that's a possibility? Is there any reason she'd want to stay hidden this badly?"

"The same reason she ran away, likely." Fujino replied. "A friend of hers died a few months ago, and a teacher she was close to died a few days ago. I don't think she's in a good headspace, right now."

"...Yeah, that sounds pretty rough." Arisawa noted.

"I'm... Not entirely sure what to do, if that's the case." Fujino acknowledged . "If the fairies are keeping her hidden on another's command, that's concerning, all things considered, but it's something that can be dealt with. If Misaya doesn't want to be found, then it may be difficult to convince her to come home."

This was seeming more and more complicated by the moment, Fujino had to admit. This was already going to be more difficult than when she had helped Miyazuki Risu.

Back then, Fujino had been lucky. In that situation, Fujino had known the right words to say. The friend Risu was mourning, Andou Yuuko, had spoken with Fujino before, and Fujino had just been able to use Andou's words when speaking with Risu to encourage the girl to keep living. Fujino did not know Ouji Misaya's friend, Tachibana, enough to be able to do the same. Nor was she able to repeat anything said to her by Kurogiri, the dead teacher.

But then, Fujino could worry about what to say to when she actually found Misaya, didn't she?

For now, then, with the theory that something supernatural was almost certainly involved with Misaya's situation, perhaps Fujino should use her supernatural trait a bit more to find her. She didn't have any leads at the present, but perhaps if her clairvoyance saw a fairy, or even Ouji herself, at a distance, the situation would simplify itself.

As the conversation between herself and Arisawa lulled, Fujino took a moment to breath, and opened her mind's eye yet again.

It was only a brief glance, a scan around, of the area around Fujino. Even if this would help, she did not want to do it for long. And as she searched for anything that might help her find Misaya, her eyes turned towards a Hollow instead.

It wasn't far from Fujino right now, the oddly formed creature with a head that seemed to be backwards on it's body. It's movements certainly reminded Fujino of someone trying to walk backwards, as it approached-

 **[X] -A small girl, who stumbled away from the Hollow with an alarmed expression.**  
 **[X] -An orange-haired boy, who was moving away from it at a surprisingly fast pace.**  
 **[X] -From the looks of it's path, it would be cutting Fujino and Arisawa off, at the next intersection.**


	9. Chapter 9

**[X] -A small girl, who stumbled away from the Hollow with an alarmed expression.**

The backwards facing monster stumbled forward, towards the girl, and Fujino took a moment to observe the situation.

The girl was looking up in fear, directly at the monster. She didn't look hurt, so was she looking at it, and actually seeing it?

That was...

Well, it might be relevant, but for now, the girl was looking in fear as she crawled back, moving to get on her feet while keeping as much distance as she could. She was obviously in danger, right now. And-

Fujino hesitated, as she began to focus her sight.

That Hollow used to be human, didn't it?

It was a double standard, since she'd killed them before. But still, Fujino didn't want to move straight to the murder.

Well, that wasn't true. She wanted to kill it. Her sight had already focused around the Hollow's head, even if it didn't seem to have a neck. But that wasn't really what Fujino wanted, was it? It was the shift in her mindset because of her psychic powers.

It had been a human at some point. Urahara had said that this existence was one of suffering, and Fujino had used that to put the issue out of mind at the time, but that didn't change the fact that this was a human soul. Once she killed it, Fujino would have killed another human soul and taken enjoyment out of it.

The fact that it was a monster wasn't all that relevant. Fujino had killed rapists and innocent strangers alike, and she had enjoyed it all the same either way. If it was a human soul, and if it was sentient enough to go mad in the first place, it was still sentient. Fujino would enjoy the murder for the fact that she had the power and had used it.

The Hollow moved closer to the girl, and Fujino forced that train of thought to an end.

She didn't have time for this, right now. But at the same time, she didn't want to regret a decision she made in the spur of the second again.

Shifting her clairvoyant gaze downwards, Fujino focused on the creatures backwards leg.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it became a curse.

"Bend."

The creatures leg splintered and twisted, and Fujino felt a smile come to her face before she forced herself to stop. Even this much, she was enjoying. For now, at least, she just wanted to buy time for the girl before she made a decision of whether or not to kill the Hollow.

"Did you say something, Asagami?" Arisawa asked, and Fujino took a moment to realise that she had spoken aloud with her curse.

It had felt natural to do it, but she had forgotten that Arisawa would hear it.

"There's a Hollow nearby, Arisawa." Fujino explained. "It was approaching a girl. I'm slowing it down."

"...Ah." Arisawa noted. "You took it out?"

"I slowed it down." Fujino confessed. "It's... More difficult, to simply behead it, now that I know what it actually is."

Arisawa probably reacted, but Fujino was looking around to the black-haired girl. She was looking at the Hollow, confused and somewhat sickened by the spray of blood, but for the second the Hollow was looking around confused, she got to her feet. She looked around, and the Hollow jumped at her. She ran out of the way before it landed on her, and the Hollow took a moment to push itself to its feet, before turning back towards her.

"The girl can see the Hollow." Fujino noted. "Perhaps we should have a talk with her? She's not far from here, and she may be involved."

"She can see-" Arisawa began, before cutting herself off. "Alright, let's go. Which way?"

Fujino took a moment to shift her gaze to cover more ground, so as to see both herself and the Hollow at the same time.

"That way." Fujino answered, pointing her cane. There was a building between her and the Hollow, but it gave the direction away. "The girl is running, but if we follow this street and turn right... Well, if you run ahead, you can catch her."

Pausing for a moment, Fujino considered whether or not to ask it of Arisawa, before reaching a decision.

"Could you try talking to her by yourself first? She asked. "I'd prefer that my secret spread as little as possible. If she doesn't need to know about me, I'd prefer if she didn't."

"That's fine." Arisawa responded. She sounded confused, but from her posture, it was clear she wanted to run off and talk to the girl about the Hollow.

Fujino nodded at her, and Arisawa ran off. Viewing the situation through her clairvoyance, Asagami noticed that the Hollow wasn't limping towards the girl anymore. Rather, it was coming towards her now.

Urahara had mentioned that Asagami would be a beacon to Hollows when her ESP was active, she supposed.

Well, as it was now, the Hollow wasn't putting the girl in any more danger. On the other hand, now Asagami herself was in danger. Killing it and ending that danger would be so easy, but still, she hesitated.

Perhaps it would do her some good to speak to it, and see how far it had degraded. It wasn't as if it could get close to her without losing all of it's limbs anyway, and that extra surety that the Hollow was too far gone to be considered human anymore may make it easier to just kill it.

Walking towards it slowly, with her gaze still focused away from her, Asagami took a moment to reflect about how the sensation of feeling had returned to her again.

She had a rock stuck in her shoe, she noticed suddenly. It was pressing against her heel when she walked. It was slightly painful, but didn't seem sharp, so she left it for now. The sensation may not be inherently enjoyable, but this was something that she rarely got to feel, that normal people would get annoyed about constantly. She wouldn't be feeling it anymore soon anyway, so there was no point making a point of fixing it now.

For a brief second, Fujino shifted her gaze towards Arisawa and the girl, who had met, and were talking. The girl seemed panicked, but the two did see, to be familiar with each other. Or perhaps Asagami was merely leaping to a conclusion, and the girl was simply acting less guarded than Fujino would expect of someone who had just been attacked by a ghost monster.

But that was something that could be dealt with later. The Hollow was shambling towards Fujino now, and as the girl shifted her faze to focus only on it and herself, she spoke.

"Please don't move any further." She began. "I wish to-"

The eyes on the Hollow's mask widened as it looked at her, and it's head started to shake independently of it's body. Then, it began to rotate, with a painful and familiar bending sound, as it's head shifted to a proper orientation facing away from Fujino, and then continued to face backwards again.

As it twisted, it's neck started to emerge upwards, more clearly defining the separation between the body and the head. But more importantly, Fujino noticed something that gave her pause.

The pattern of the twisted neck was reminiscent of her own work.

"Asa... Gami..."

Repeat the phrase enough, and it became a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow screamed as Fujino focused her power around it's neck, putting her full psychic force behind it. It spun around once, twice, three times, with no apparent harm, before she focused her power downwards.

"Bend!"

The torso on the Hollow was torn in two, and it fell apart.

It knew her name.

The Hollow with the twisted neck, which didn't seem effected by any further twisted to it's neck, knew her name.

Was this one of her victims? How did they get here? Why would they be here? If it's neck was twisted because of her own acts, and it's limbs were fine, that would make it the truck driver, wouldn't it? He wouldn't have known who she was, he only saw her for a brief second before Fujino acted on instinct to kill him.

It knew too much.

 _"Bend!"_ She repeated, louder. The Hollow's mask tore in half, as the centre of it's head began to rotate. It's neck didn't seem to be effected, but the rest of it was under no such restriction. It knew too much, and Fujino was strong enough to make sure nothing came of this.

She felt herself smiling, felt the crawling euphoria at the bloody act, and for a moment, she was tempted to let herself enjoy this. She would be panicking later about trying to figure out how the Hollow knew her name, if she was jumping to conclusions, if this was somehow related to the Fairies, if this was somehow related to the man who had healed her spin, for now she could just-

No, she forced herself to calm down. The Hollow was already fading away, anyway. She deactivated her ESP, and ensured she was properly sane before she thought any more on the issue.

She felt the sensation of the rock in her shoes fade away, and began missing the feeling instantly. But she could think more about that later.

So much for convincing herself that the Hollow was too far gone to be considered human. It had talked to her, rather than roaring and screeching. It had recognised her, or at least knew of her. If anything, now she knew more about Hollows and their humanity than anything prior to this point.

And she'd killed it in a blind panic. No, that was not right. She had panicked, yes, but it was hardly blind. It was just enough to give her an excuse, and she enjoyed it for some time before she had restrained herself.

Asagami Fujino was a murderer who loved the thrill. She knew it, and she had thought it before, but now seemed like a fitting point to ensure that she remembered the point. She was a monster who was enjoyed killing people, regardless of the excuse she would use to justify it. She needed to be aware of her this, and her excuses, before she goes as far as she had been going when Ryougi Shiki had hunted her down.

Stop. Take a moment to think about this. Breathe in, breathe out.

The Hollow knew her name, and it's neck was twisted. If the twisted neck had any connection to Fujino's own murders, than it could only be the truck driver. Unless Hollows only bore marks of what had killed them, in which case it could be any of Fujino's murders, assuming that none of them had died of blood loss before she reached their necks.

Or perhaps it was entirely unrelated. The last Hollow she had seen didn't appear to have any marks of death, after all.

So, there was one explanation which would explain why the dead Hollow knew her name, and two more likely explanations which left how it knew her name a mystery. There was something she didn't understand here.

Had she misunderstood what Urahara had meant, when he had said that this land was good for Hollows? Were their ghosts following Fujino around most of the time, which only truly went Hollow and took a physical form when in Karakura town? Were Fujino's _other_ victims going to appear?

Or was this related to the Fairies somehow? They could consume memories, but was that the limit of what they could do? Had they found someone who knew about Asagami and passed on the relevant information to this Hollow?

But who would even know? If Asagami Fujino was safe from the memory consumption with enough psychic power to destroy a bridge, then Ryougi Shiki, who boasted of being able to kill a god, should be immune as well. The man who had healed her back would only know if he was watching, but it was a possibility. And other than that...

Fujino just didn't know.

"Asagami?"

Fujino blinked at the voice, and turned around.

"Did I keep you waiting, Arisawa?" Fujino asked. "My bad. I was lost in thought."

"I heard you shouting something." Arisawa explained. "Like, not loud enough to make out what it was, but you were saying something."

"Sorry." Fujino stated. "I was dealing with the Hollow. It's gone now."

Arisawa didn't need to know any of Fujino's current inner turmoil, the girl decided.

At that comment, though, another voice spoke up.

"Hey, weren't you the girl who had an appointment with goatface this morning?"

Fujino took a moment to recognise that voice. That was one of the doctor's daughters. She suspected it was Karin, but she hadn't been there for long, and it had been a long day since then. It might have been the other one, and Fujino had just gotten their voices confused.

"Oh, er, right." Arisawa noted. "Asagami, this is Kurosaki Karin. You might've run into her at your appointment earlier. She's the sister of my friend Ichigo. Karin, this is Asagami Fujino."

"You told her about me?" Fujino asked, frowning.

"Er, sorry." Arisawa replied, sounding a bit bashful. "I knew her, and she was investigating something about Yuzu forgetting something, so we started talking about it and I kind of let it slip..."

Asagami sighed.

It's fine. It's fine. As long as she dealt with this without either of them finding out that she was a murderer, Asagami could deal with this. It was frustrating, and more people knew her secret now, but Asagami doubted she was ever return to Karakura once she was done here, so it didn't really matter.

"It's nice to meet you, Kurosaki." Fujino nodded. "I assume you and Arisawa reached some kind of agreement on what to do from here?"

"Not too much." Arisawa replied.

"She mentioned that Ichigo might have remembered things that something else forgot recently." Kurosaki noted. "Which means I'm going to have to try and get him to talk. But with regards to you and your friend, we really didn't talk much. It's your business, so I don't want to intrude until you ask about it."

"You'd be fine staying out of it if that's what I wanted?" Fujino asked.

"I don't really want to get involved in all of this." Kurosaki sighed. "Ghosts and ESPers and fairies... It all seems like a hassle. It'd be easier to just pretend like none of it exists like I've always done. Yuzu saying she feels like she's forgotten something made me wonder. I'd felt like I'd forgotten a few things recently, too. But if people are already handling it, then I just want to make sure I know when it's not going to be a problem, and to know what my brother's dealing with."

That was something Fujino could understand, as she listened to the girl's words. Asagami had also wanted to just sit out this whole supernatural life, and in a simpler world, she would have just pretended that her own ESP and related aspects just didn't exist.

But then, in a simpler world, would she have been motivated to help people like Risu and Misaya in the first place?

Well, that was irrelevant, anyway. The fact of the matter was, Fujino could empathise with a desire to not wanting to be involved in the world of the supernatural. And it wasn't as if Fujino had any leads which she could ask Kurosaki Karin to help her with, anyway.

Thinking it over for a second, Fujino reached a decision.

 **[X] Kurosaki didn't need to get involved if she didn't want to. Asagami and Arisawa would deal with it.**  
 **[X] Fujino didn't have any leads, so really, any helping hand to find one would be of assistance.**  
 **[X] Perhaps Karin could help Arisawa get answers from Ichigo? If Karin kept him occupied until Arisawa got to their home and cornered him, perhaps they could all get some answers.**


	10. Chapter 10

**[X] Perhaps Karin could help Arisawa get answers from Ichigo? If Karin kept him occupied until Arisawa got to their home and cornered him, perhaps they could all get some answers.**

Fujino took a moment to look at Kurosaki, thinking it over, before she spoke.

"Do you know what time your brother usually gets home in the afternoon?" She asked.

There was a pause, before Karin replied. "Ever since school went on break, he's been staying out late at night most of the time. Inconsistent on when he gets back, but usually late enough that he just eats dinner and goes to bed. And then he leaves early in the morning as well, and I have no idea what he does all day."

"Hey, Karin." Arisawa said softly, as if trying not to be heard. "She can't see when you shake your head."

"O-Oh, um, my bad."

Asagami didn't comment on the exchange, instead thinking things over for a bit.

"So, if you were going to make him talk on your own, what would you try?" She asked.

Kurosaki took a moment to reply again. "Well, I don't want to cause a scene late at night and wake up Yuzu and goatface, so I suppose I'd try to catch him in the morning before he leaves and hope I can make him talk."

Fujino considered the answer for a moment before she continued. "Wouldn't the rest of your family overhear it if you had a conversation in the house? It might be harder to get answers out of him regarding the supernatural if people who don't know are around."

"I suppose." Kurosaki noted. "Maybe I could get him out of the house for it. He's been distant, but if I make something up about some delinquents chasing kids out of parks, I could talk him into following me there to give them a beating over it."

"This could work." Fujino mused. "Assuming he didn't just leave once he knew it was a trick, and you aren't overheard. Arisawa, do you think you could make him talk if you found him?"

"Probably." Arisawa replied. "If he's trying to keep me in the dark on the supernatural, I know enough to make that pointless, and he shouldn't have any other reason not to talk."

"It might be best if you were there, then." Asagami noted. "Kurosaki, I assume, doesn't know anything direct about the secrets her brother has been keeping? But Arisawa has an example to use for the memory loss, one she was there for first-hand, so she may have better luck in that regard."

"That could work." Kurosaki mused. "I'd need to make sure Yuzu didn't overhear and contradict the story, though. Maybe fill her in in advance that I'm getting Tatsuki to help yell at him for avoiding everyone."

"I'm assuming you'd be dragging him to the usual park, then?" Arisawa asked. "I could probably be there... About seven or so in the morning, if that's what you're doing."

"That should be early enough to stop Ichigo from leaving." Kurosaki noted.

"Should I be there?" Asagami asked. "I don't know him so I wouldn't be of any help in the conversation, but if he does know anything relevant, I would like to know."

"Sure, tag along." Arisawa replied. "You have ESP, so maybe if you're on hand, it'll be easier to get him to talk about supernatural stuff."

"I would prefer not to give a demonstration." Asagami interrupted. "Or let many more people know that I have supernatural powers, unless it was necessary."

"We could just lie and say you've had experience with the stuff happening right now." Arisawa pointed out.

Asagami took a moment to stifle the kneejerk reaction to decline that, and thought it through, for a moment. If Kurosaki Ichigo did know anything relevant to the fairies, memory consumption, or Misaya, then Fujino wanted to be there for the conversation. Actually being able to ask questions was too important to have Fujino just hide.

Besides, there was two possibilities here. That Kurosaki Ichigo was hiding something about the supernatural, or that he didn't know anything. Assuming the former, someone who was trying to keep their secret from spreading wouldn't spread more secrets. And in the case of the latter, then they wouldn't even get that far in the conversation in the first place.

"So, that's the plan then?" Kurosaki Karin asked. "Get Ichigo to the park and get him to talk? What's the plan for that?"

"Start by bringing up how he's avoiding everyone." Tatsuki began. "Move in to how he's been acting weird for a while. Then bring in the supernatural stuff somehow, then the memory eating fairies, then how he seemed to be remembering that one thing differently."

"I'll bring up the whole seeing ghosts thing." Karin offered. "And-"

"The what now thing?" Arisawa interrupted.

There was a moment of silence before Kurosaki continued. "...Ichigo and I have been able to see ghosts since forever. Didn't you hear?"

"I thought that was just a rumour." Arisawa replied. "I'd _asked_ him about it before, when we were kids. After- What, did he just lie to my face about it? Why didn't you mention this before?"

"It's easier to pretend they don't exist." Kurosaki replied. "There's probably nothing good to come from paying attention to the dead."

"Well, it looks like he's been keeping that secret for a while." Grumbling Arisawa. "...Or he did tell me and some memory thing happened so I remember that differently."

"Or I remember it differently." Karin pointed out.

"It's probably simpler to assume the least complicated possibility." Asagami pointed out. "I don't see why someone would alter your memories to make you think someone _was_ involved in the supernatural, and I don't think we have seen any memory changes that would change enough years of memory to be 'Since forever'."

"Yeah, sure, why not." Kurosaki replied. "Probably easier to think that."

"And besides, I think we have enough to work off of now." Asagami replied. "Kurosaki talks her brother into coming to the park with her, Arisawa and I find the two of you, and Arisawa questions him why he's been avoiding everyone. Kurosaki brings up the ghosts and Hollows, Arisawa can mention the difference in memory regarding that one classmate, and if it looks like he knows something after those two points but doesn't say anything, I can bring up the fairies and say that anything he does know about the memory loss may be of help resolving this situation."

"If we need to do anything else, then I suppose we'll figure it out when we get to it." Arisawa commented.

"Alright, then." Kurosaki sighed. "Drag Ichigo to the park, get him to spill, then you guys deal with it while I go and forget any of this ever happened."

"Oh, hold on a moment Karin." Arisawa interrupted. "The fairies' memory eating thing, they won't be able to do that to you if you take these."

There was a moment without any speech as Arisawa, presumably, passed Kurosaki some of the pills she had gotten from Urahara.

"The guy I mentioned earlier, who actually knows about magic stuff? Says if you take one of those every twenty-four hours, they can't get you."

"Thanks." Kurosaki noted. "Just to be clear, though, you said they only chase people who're looking into that girl from out of town?"

"Or to cover up any information about her." Asagami added in. "How many did you give her, Arisawa?"

"About a weeks worth." Arisawa replied. "The old man with the hat said it's safe to take more than on every twenty-four hours and it might be risky to not double up, so just let me know if you need more, I'll take you to the storekeeper to go get more."

"Thanks." Kurosaki replied. "I should be getting home now, then. Need to talk to Yuzu so she knows not to tip Ichigo off."

"See you tomorrow, then." Arisawa said.

"Bye." Kurosaki replied in turn. Asagami waved her hand, until she heard footsteps running off into the distance.

"Well, tomorrow it is, then." Arisawa noted. "Do you have any ideas for finding your friend in the meantime?"

"Not particularly." Asagami replied. "If the fairies are keeping everything about her covered up, then I don't expect just anyone on the street to be able to say much. Unless she bought food at a supermarket at some point and got caught on camera, but I doubt we'd be allowed to look into that."

"She's got to be staying somewhere, though." Arisawa mused to herself. "Maybe it would be worth it to look into all the hotels and motels, and see if she's there. Or if the receptionists have any records of her."

Asagami took a moment to think about that. "When I go back to the hotel tonight, I'll ask again if they've seen her. Maybe if I ask whoever is at the front desk if they have a record to make sure, it'll lead to somewhere. But I doubt it. If Misaya is running away from the fairies, then I don't think she'd want to put people at risk of them, and if she was running with the fairies, I don't think she would be increasing how much work they need to do to hide her."

There was silence for a moment, as Asagami tried to think of what else she could do.

Perhaps she could try to find where there was a lot of fairies, and assume Misaya was around there? But that assumed the fairies weren't just patrolling with instructions. It could work, but there was ways in which it could go wrong, as well.

"Oh, uh, Asagami? Sorry for letting Karin know about you. I know you said not to mention you, I just didn't think it through."

Oh, yes, that had happened. Fujino had been distracted, but now that she remembered it, perhaps she should speak on that matter.

"I would appreciate it if you put more effort into not mentioning me, in the future." Asagami told her. "I've gone through a lot of effort to keep my ESP hidden. I made the mistake of letting you know when I first arrived here and saved you from that Hollow, but this trip in general has already involved too many people finding out. When I go home, I don't want to have to worry about more and more people finding out here."

"Hey, it's fine." Arisawa replied. "Anyone who doesn't already know about the supernatural won't believe it anyway, so-"

That was not the kind of answer that Fujino was looking for.

"Arisawa." She interrupted, with a more stern tone. "Perhaps I was too lenient when I told you about it. Perhaps it has given you the wrong impression of how much I would prefer this stayed a secret. I want to live my life as a normal person, as much as I can under these circumstances. The more people who know about my ESP, the more chance there is that something could happen to ruin that for me."

"...Is it that much of a sore spot for you?" Arisawa asked.

Fujino nodded. "Before I came to Karakua, only one other person knew about this. Between you, Kurosaki, and everyone at the candy shop, that number has risen far more than I am comfortable with."

Fujino hoped that the stern tone she had taken would conceal that one white lie hidden in her words. One person before this adventure, if you discard Ryougi Shiki, Araya Souren, and Keita. But the core point of Fujino's argument remained the same. She had only shown her power to Risu before this, and now it was known to six other people.

"Alright, then." Arisawa replied. "I don't get it, but I understand. I'll try harder not to slip up again. Promise."

Asagami let out a breath she didn't realise she had been holding. "Apologies for being snappy, Arisawa. This trip has been a little stressful. I hope I didn't come across as too rude."

"It's fine, it's fine." Arisawa replied. "...You know, if you really don't want to take that risk, you could sit out the conversation with Ichigo tomorrow if you want. We could probably get answers out of him without you."

"That would be nice." Asagami mused. "But if he does know anything that could be relevant to the fairies, I would prefer to be able to question him on it."

"I could try to make sure for you first." Arisawa replied. "Like, at this point I'll be surprised if Ichigo isn't involved in something supernatural, but you could hide in a bush nearby and I'll talk to Ichigo to make sure he does know anything about memory consumption or anything."

Asagami frowned. "In a bush?"

"Is there a problem with hiding in a bush?" Arisawa asked.

"Wouldn't that be somewhat..." Fujino took a moment to try to fumble for the words. "Undignified?"

Arisawa barely stifled a chuckle, at that.

"If you find something amusing about the situation, I don't see it." Asagami frowned.

"Ah, nothing, don't worry about it." Arisawa replied.

Fujino decided to worry about it. "I feel like it'd draw too much attention if I got some leaves stuck to me, or dirt on my clothes, and didn't notice."

"Hide behind a tree or a rock, then." Arisawa replied. "Or hell, just stay in the distance and I'll come and get you if it turns out Ichigo knows something. If you're overly worried about too much about you coming out without a good reason, we could find some way to let that happened. What do you want?"

Well, thinking about it rationally, it would be more concerning if more people knew about her ESP without reason, then if she looked a little dirty. So it was a possibility, even if it complicated things. Perhaps it was worth considering?

It didn't take much to reach a conclusion, though.

 **[X] There wasn't much purpose to it. It'd be easier to be part of the conversation while the information is being explained firsthand.**  
 **[X] It was better to be safe than sorry. Asagami could wander around away from the conversation and wait for Arisawa to call her.**


	11. Chapter 11

**[X] There wasn't much purpose to it. It'd be easier to be part of the conversation while the information is being explained firsthand.**

Sitting on a bench in the park, Asagami Fujino waited.

Another day had passed, and she still hadn't found any clues of where Misaya was. She had met Arisawa near the hotel that morning, and the two of them were waiting for Kurosaki to arrive with her brother.

Perhaps, for the sake of clarity in the conversation they were going to have soon, Fujino should make sure to refer to Karin by her first name. She did know her more than her brother, so of the two, it made more sense for him to be the one referred to more formally. Hopefully, the girl wouldn't find that rude, or at the very least would understand.

"It shouldn't be too much longer." Arisawa mentioned. "Asagami, are you ready?"

"I think you should be the one wondering about that." Fujino replied. "You are the one who will need to do the hardest part, between us."

"Right, right." Arisawa shrugged off the comment. "And hey, don't worry, I'll make sure not to mention any of your secrets. The plan is to just kinda not mention you in general and push the issue so Ichigo has to answer us, so even if he asks about you he won't get any answers until you enter the conversation."

"Thank you for the thought, Arisawa." Fujino answered. The way she brought it up so suddenly was odd, but considering that Fujino had made a big deal about it yesterday, it made sense that Arisawa would keep it in mind. Perhaps some of it came down to impatience.

Standing from the bench and keeping her cane close at hand, Fujino turned her head back towards Arisawa.

"Let's start walking, then." Asagami said. "If you think they'll be here soon, then we ought to start looking, right?"

"Right." Arisawa replied. "Ichigo's house is over that way, so... Follow me, Asagami, I think I know where they'll be coming from."

The sound of Arisawa's footsteps began to move around Fujino, and she spun to face the sound so she could begin walking when she heard Arisawa moving away.

The plan was simple, Asagami thought, and all she had to do was just listen for the most part. Hopefully, by the time she needed to say anything at all, Kurosaki Ichigo would have already confessed to knowing something, or made it abundantly clear that he did not. Perhaps she would have to be involved in the conversation before that point, but if she could avoid talking before she was asking Kurosaki if he knew anything about the fairies, then that would be preferable.

Arisawa's footsteps stopped ahead of Fujino slightly, and Fujino stopped as well.

"Is something the matter?" Asagami asked.

"There they are." Arisawa replied, before raising her voice. "Oi, Ichigo!"

She ran out ahead, and Asagami took a moment to start walking again. There was no point in trying to keep up, so she may as well focus on trying to listen to what was going on up ahead instead.

"Tatsuki?" An unfamiliar voice asked. Presumably, that would be Kurosaki Ichigo. "What're you-"

He was cut off by something inaudible, before Arisawa started talking again.

"Where the hell have you been?" Arisawa asked, somewhat aggressively. "You've been avoiding me ever since break started. Heck, you've been avoiding _everyone_. What's going on?"

"Why's it matter?" The boy responded. "It's my business-"

"Don't give me that crap." Arisawa interrupted. "You were acting weird when school was ending and then you just started disappearing all day and not telling anyone where you were going. What's up with that? What's going on?"

"Let go of me, Tatsuki, isn't your arm supposed to be-"

Kurosaki Karin interrupted her brother before he could finish his sentence. "Does this have something to do with the ghost thing, brother?"

There was a moment of silence, which Fujino took to try to piece together anything no immediately obvious to her.

Evidently, Arisawa was being more aggressive with making Ichigo talk than Fujino had initially expected. It sounded like she was being physical, to some degree? Somewhere between holding him still and manhandling him, at least.

He also hadn't seemed to notice Fujino yet, she mused, as she stopped walking some distance away from them. She faced towards the source of the noise so as to make it obvious that she was listening, but he hadn't mentioned her just yet. Presumably, Arisawa yelling in his ear was distracting.

"...What are you talking about, Karin?" Kurosaki asked, his voice seeming unconvincing. "Ghost's aren't rea-"

"She was attacked by one yesterday, Ichigo." Arisawa interrupted. "I was there. I saw it. She told me you've been able to see them since forever ago."

"What? A Hollow attacked-"

"How do you know what a Hollow is?" Arisawa interrupted again.

Kurosaki Ichigo went silent, and from her place in the distance, Asagami felt a sense of relief. He'd slipped up. At this point, he'd need to come clean, and Asagami wouldn't need to give away information to bait information out of him.

"Why don't you start being honest, Ichigo?" Arisawa asked, her voice low, somewhat threatening. "You can see ghosts. You know what Hollows are. And hey, you said something about my arm earlier? Nobody else noticed it was fixed up. So why's that different here, Ichigo?"

"...Well you've gone and learnt a lot recently." Kurosaki muttered under his breath. "How'd you learn so much, then? Did Urahara tell you?"

"You know Urahara?" Arisawa asked. "I- You know what, that's not important. You know, then? For how long?"

"Stop manhandling me and I'll talk." Kurosaki demanded.

"You'll get your freedom back when you start talking." Karin pipped up.

"I like the way she thinks." Arisawa responded.

"Karin- Was this a plan? Did you really have any issues with delinquents?"

"Nope. Don't change the subject. Talk."

Ichigo sighed, and was silent for another long time. Trying to figure out how to phrase the next few sentences? Or trying to figure out how much information to give away and how much to hide?

"Alright, let's start with the important thing." He muttered out. "I don't suppose Urahara ever mentioned something called a Mod Soul?"

"What's that got to do with-"

"Please bear with me." Ichigo sighed. "I'll take that as a no."

"Go on, then." Arisawa growled.

"Right, right." Kurosaki muttered softly. "So, ghosts. There's ghosts. There's mediums who can see ghosts. And there's some mediums who can use techniques that let them do ghost stuff. With me so far?"

"This is new stuff." Arisawa noted. "But get to the point."

"I'm getting to the point. So there's some mediums who can have their spirit leave their body. And when they do that, they need to do something to keep their bodies safe and all that. A Mod Soul is something that can help with that. Put an artificial soul in a body, let it look after the flesh while the spirit gets to work."

"Why are you telling me about this? Why aren't you talking about anything we actually asked about?" Arisawa demanded.

"...You..." Kurosaki began, his voice suddenly a lot less rough and a lot more nervous. "...Might be talking to a Mod Soul right now."

...What?

"Explain." Arisawa growled. "Now."

"Right, well, y'see..." The apparently-not-Ichigo-after-all boy began. "Let's say, theoretically, Kurosaki Ichigo got wrapped up in spiritual stuff and needed something to look after his body while he was busy. Theoretically. And then he was given my- Uh, an artificial soul to do that. And then when school break starts he needs to go for a while and I- The artificial soul, needs to cover for him for a few weeks. And the artificial soul is good at pretending to be gruff but isn't the best actor so doesn't want to be pressured like this and please stop looking at me like this it was Ichigo's idea not mine."

There was, for some time, another long moment of silence.

"Okay." Kurosaki Karin spoke up. "So you're not my brother. You're some stranger in his body living in our house eating our dinner making us all worry while Ichigo... Does what, exactly?"

"...I don't think he'd be very happy if I-"

His voice cut out with a pained cry, and Arisawa Tatsuki began speaking again.

"Explain everything. Right now."

"Yes ma'am." The fake spirit confirmed. "So, uh, it started a while ago. It started with..."

He trailed off, before speaking on another subject. "...Is the purple haired girl supposed to be watching us?"

"Hello." Asagami spoke up, at that comment. "I'm meant to be here. I'm also extremely confused. Don't mind me just yet."

"...Okay." The spirit in Kurosaki's body continued. "So, uh, I'm Kon. Short for- Well it doesn't matter, I'll get to the important thing. I was made by, uh, Shinigami. Which are basically the ghost police. They're meant to hunt Hollows and help ghosts pass on. The one assigned to this area got hurt because of Ichigo so Ichigo had to take the job for a bit, and I was meant to cover for him while he was doing that."

"He's been fighting ghosts?" Arisawa asked. "For how long?"

"I don't have the exact date." Kon explained. "Since May."

 _"May?"_ Karin asked. "That's- It's _August_ now. How has he been doing this for so long without anyone noticing?"

"Rukia- She's the Shinigami by the way, her name's Rukia- She had a tool for clearing memories."

Well, would you look at that. Perhaps there was some kind of connection there.

Before pushing that, though, perhaps it would be wise to let Arisawa get all the answers she wanted out of him.

"Okay I'm just gonna talk faster." Kon quickly corrected. "So, uh, yeah. Ghost stuff happened. Ichigo did Shinigami duties, but it turns out that Rukia giving him her Shinigami powers was kinda technically illegal so some other Shinigami arrived to come arrest her, and they nearly killed Ichigo. Then he lost the Shinigami powers she gave him so Urahara helped him figure out his own Shinigami powers and now he's gone after them to go save Rukia."

"People nearly killed him, and now he's going back for round two?" Karin asked.

"It's not a decision I would have made but I'm not him so-"

"Wait, Tatsuki said she'd met Urahara recently, so what? Did Ichigo go to fight some death gods on his own?"

"No, no, he's got friends with him. Chad, Orihime, Ishid-"

"Orihime?" Arisawa asked, her tone significantly different from before. Before, she sounded angry, borderline hostile. But now, she seemed as if she was more confused, perhaps lost on some level. "She's involved too?"

"I don't know how long she's known about things." Kon brought up. "She knew by the time Rukia was taken, and she's gone with Ichigo to go save her."

"How did she get involved? Karin asked.

There was a moment of silence. "I dunno. I guess when Rukia was taken and they wiped the memory of her pretending to be a student, it didn't stick for her."

"...I see..." Arisawa continued. "...I'm going to go for a walk. Stay here, Asagami's gonna want to ask a few things."

The sound of footsteps echoed away from the voices, towards Fujino, as Arisawa passed her.

"Are you okay, Arisawa?" Fujino asked. She didn't seem to be taking this well. Was this Orihime a friend of hers as well?

"I'm fine." Arisawa replied. "Just... Want to think on my own for a minute. I'll be back soon, ask the faker about the stuff I guess."

She continued leaving before Asagami could respond, and Fujino took a moment to look back after her, before she heard Kon speak.

"So, uh, you're Asagami?"

Fujino looked back towards the speaker at that comment. "That is me, yes. Asagami Fujino."

"Nice to meet you." Kon greeted. "You, uh, had something you wanted to talk about?"

"There has been a bit of an incident going on, recently." Asagami explained. "I was hoping to ask Kurosaki Ichigo if he knew anything about it, if he was involved in the supernatural, but I suppose you would know as much as he does."

"I mean, I suppose I do." The boy continued. "Though, do you want to take the conversation somewhere else? If we're going to talk about this kind of stuff for much longer, it might be a good idea to go somewhere more private."

Asagami took a moment to consider the issue, before getting distracted by the memory of Arisawa's tone as she left.

She had said she wanted to be alone for a moment, but the news had upset her, apparently. Perhaps talking to her would help her feel better? Or perhaps it would be best to leave her for the moment and talk to her when she wanted to talk.

 **[X] Talk with Arisawa now. Making sure she wasn't too upset over the news was probably important. She could talk with Kon after that.**  
 **[X] Leave Arisawa for now. Asagami barely knew her, so intruding may seem rude. Ask Kon if he knew anything about the Fairies first.**


	12. Chapter 12

**[X] Leave Arisawa for now. Asagami barely knew her, so intruding may seem rude. Ask Kon if he knew anything about the Fairies first.**

Internally sighing, Fujino tried to push the thought of Arisawa out of her mind, for now. Even if it looked like Arisawa was upset, there wasn't anything Fujino could do to fix this, right now. They weren't that close, all things considered. They had met only a few days ago, and Arisawa had only started helping Asagami look for Misaya because she hadn't had anything better to do, at first.

If anyone here should be going to check on Arisawa, it would have to be Kurosaki Karin. She would have known Arisawa for longer, so if she wasn't going to check on Arisawa, then Fujino certainly wasn't close enough to do so.

Focusing back towards Kon, Asagami continued that conversation, instead.

"I feel like we should keep the conversation around here, so Arisawa knows where to find us." Fujino began. "Though perhaps we should be cautious of anyone overhearing us."

"If you say so." Kon replied. "So, this incident you were-"

"Hold on, time out." Kurosaki replied. "This is weird."

"You're going to have to be more specific." Kon replied. "Everything about this is weird. What's the one you have problems with?"

"You have Ichigo's voice and his face but your speak like you're nervous and trying to avoid offending people and it's weirding me out. Is there a way you can stop using my brother's body?"

"Ah. That." Kon accepted. "Yeah, sorry, I can't really do anything about that. I mean, I can leave this body and get others, but I kinda need a body to talk, and if I leave Ichigo's body unattended and something happens to it he's not gonna be happy with me."

"...Tch, fine." Kurosaki muttered. "Go on, Asagami."

"Thank you, Kurosaki." Fujino nodded in her direction. "Kon, do you know anything about fairies?"

"Never heard of them." Kon replied. "Why? Is this incident involving them?"

"Yes." Asagami confirmed. "I believe Tsukabichi described them as hand-crafted magical beings. There's been a few of them around Karakura around recently."

"Someone made them?" Kon asked, and Fujino nodded in confirmation. "Well I'm going to guess there's a reason for that?"

"They have the power to take memories." Fujino explained.

"...Well that's, uh, not good." Kon noted.

"You said that the Shinigami would've wiped memories when that took that Rukia person?" Kurosaki spoke up. "So you'd know a bit about memory erasure already?"

"I'm not sure about how similar it is." Kon replied. "But yeah, that's a thing. Rukia's done it a few times that I know about. Like, uh... Karin-"

"Don't call me Karin." Kurosaki interrupted. "You're not my brother and it's weird."

"Sorry, my bad, not gonna do that again." Kon frantically assured her. "But, uh, yeah. Rukia might've tweaked your memories a few times. Not sure. I feel like she's why you don't remember being attacked by Grand Fisher at your mother's grave-"

"Hold on." Kurosaki interrupted. "I... Feel like I should ask about this. And also about my brother going to save someone from Shinigami. But I'm going to have time to do that later, and Asagami's here now, so let's keep on track with that."

"Thank you, Kurosaki."

"Alright, focus." Kon replied. "Yeah, I do know a little bit about memory erasure. Not enough to know how it might apply to this situation. Is there anything else?"

"I believe they were at the school I go to, out of town, not long ago." Fujino explained. "I never noticed any myself, but there's significant evidence. People not knowing why they woke up somewhere, and similar situations."

"And now they're here." Kon finished Fujino's thoughts. "Any idea why?"

"When I first came to Karakura, I came looking for someone who went missing from my school recently." Fujino explained. "Ouji Misaya. She's been involved in a few situations recently. Right after a rather noteworthy incident, a teacher she spent time with died, and she disappeared at the same time. Someone said they saw her taking the train to Karakura."

"So, what you're saying is, there's a connection?" The artificial soul replied. "They're here following her?"

"They're connected to her in some way, yes." Fujino clarified. "The fairies do seem to be trying to keep people from remembering seeing her. Either the person who made them has them following her for some reason, or she is the one who made them."

"You don't know?" Kon asked.

"I don't know Ouji well." Fujino admitted. "She has been going through a rough time recently, so if she's trying to hide and be alone, she might do something like that, I'm not sure."

"Wait, you don't know her well?" Kurosaki asked. "I thought you were looking for a friend."

"She's not a friend, no." Fujino confirmed. "But Misaya hasn't had it easy, in these recent times. The only person who was really her friend died as well, a few months ago. If the only people looking for her were her friends, then she wouldn't have anyone right now."

"...Well that sounds like it sucks." Kurosaki accepted. "But why did you specifically come and do it? I mean, you're... You know."

"Blind?" Kon suggested.

"Shut up." Kurosaki replied. "I was trying to be polite."

"My bad." Kon apologised.

"But yeah, that." Karin finished. "It's so much more of a hassle for you, specifically, to come trying to find someone."

This was a bit of a predicament, Fujino had to admit. Kurosaki was raising excellent points about this, and it wasn't exactly easy to prove those points wrong, not without revealing more about Fujino's past than she was comfortable admitting.

But on the other hand, could she really just brush off the issue without it seeming like she was trying to avoid the issue?

...Well, Kurosaki had already demonstrated that she didn't want to be rude once already, so perhaps Fujino could lean on that.

"Consider it a personal issue of mine." Asagami decided on. "I have my reasons for wanting to find Misaya, and I don't want to talk about it."

"...Fine, I guess." Kurosaki replied. "Still weird and all. There really wasn't any other way that didn't involve a blind woman going around alone."

"I made my choice." Asagami replied. "And there was nobody else available, regardless."

"What do you mean nobody else?" Kon asked. "I mean, if you're looking for a classmate, is there any reason nobody else at your school could've come along?"

Fujino took a moment to consider that note, before deciding that the information was harmless enough.

"I go to Reien Academy. It's holiday dates don't line up with public school holiday dates. Technically speaking, everyone else in my school is at school."

There was a moment of silence, which Fujino could only imagine was people judging her.

"I did have a valid reason to not be there." She defended herself. "They know I'm here. I'm listed as away for medical reasons. It's not as if I'm some delinquent skipping school."

"Well, I guess that explains that, then." Kon accepted. "And you looked like you were getting annoyed there for a moment, so I guess we'll drop that topic now."

"Thank you."

"And in that case, moving on." Kon continued. "Fairies. Ouji might've made them, or they might have been made by someone following her, either or and you have no idea which. And anyone who would have seen her can't confirm anything because the fairies would have taken their memories."

"That is what we have been able to piece together." Asagami confirmed. "Do you know anything that might be relevant, or anything that might help?"

"Well, my first instinct for people not me would be to go see Urahara, because he usually knows a bit, but you've done that already if I'm getting the right idea from Tatsu- Arisawa."

"He didn't seem to be aware of the fairy when the girl there first brought it to him." Fujino explained. "Tsukabichi did examine it while we were there, and that's why we know as much as we do."

"Hm." Kon mused on the subject, for a moment. "Did they say anything else about it?"

"Tsukabichi did notice that it looked like the craftsmanship was sloppy." Fujino mused. "It had started degrading after it existed for long enough, but degraded too slow to be intentional, I think?"

"That's certainly something." Kon replied. "If it's crafted poorly, then it'd make sense if whoever was making it was new to the whole supernatural thing. Or maybe that's just by Urahara's standards, which could be higher than I thought. So maybe that could say Ouji is the one making them and she learnt recently."

"Perhaps." Fujino replied. "Or perhaps the person looking for her only managed it recently. I don't have enough information to say for sure."

"Good point." Kon replied. "Still, if it's crafted, then it's got to be made of something, right?"

"Like what?" Asagami asked.

"I dunno I'm not an expert. But it's like... I'm an artificial soul. I was made. But I wasn't just made from nothing. When you're dealing with spirits and stuff, you need some sort of spiritual matter to work with to make the stuff. Sometimes you can just use your own Rei- Actually let's just say spiritual power, getting into specifics would take a lecture and I'm bad at those- Sometimes you can use your own spiritual power to make do, but if they're poorly made and fall apart quickly, I'd wager that the fairies either need something more, or the person making them would run out before too long."

"I see." Fujino mused. "I suppose that makes sense."

"So where are you going with this?" Kurosaki asked. "Could you get around that by chopping up ghosts or something?"

"Actually, maybe." Kon admitted. "They're invisible to people who can't see ghosts, so their existence is comparable, at least. It wouldn't surprise me if you could harvest a ghost's spiritual body and use it to make another spiritual body. But I was thinking more..."

He trailed off for a moment, as if deep in thought, before he continued. "I didn't really listen to too much about what Rukia told Ichigo about Shinigami duties and whatnot, but I _vaguely_ recall her saying something about Ley Lines? Like, there's specific areas of the land where you can just get spiritual power straight out of the world, or something like that. If someone was running short on how much they had, that might work as well."

"Do you know where one would be around here?" Fujino asked.

"Uh... Maybe the abandoned hospital?" Kon suggested. "I feel like that place has a tendency of attracting Hollows and ghosts, but that might just be because people have died there a lot. Death does that to a place, even if it's been a while since anyone actually died there. Heck, graveyards attracts a lot of spirits, and that's just where the dead bodies go after dying."

Fujino took a moment to consider the conversation before she spoke again. "In other words, it might be worth investigating the abandoned hospital and graveyard, because we might be able to find some link between whoever is creating the fairies at those locations?"

"Probably." Kon replied. "And if Ouji's the one making them, maybe you'd run into her right away like that."

"Then perhaps we should go to one of those locations now." Fujino mused. "Would you be able to lead me to either of those locations?"

"I could." Kon replied. "I'd prefer not to get involved but just showing you the way shouldn't be too much of a hassle-"

"Hold on." Kurosaki interrupted. "I also don't want to get involved, don't want it to look like I'm getting involved, and don't want to push off that conversation anymore."

"...Which conversation?" Kon asked, a note of fear in his voice.

"The conversation where you tell me _everything_ that Ichigo's been up to, and then take me to go see that Urahara guy so I can get what _he_ knows about Ichigo, and I can figure out how much I need to yell at him for endangering himself when he gets back."

"That's fair." Asagami replied. "Arisawa should know the way to those locations anyway. I could ask her to show me the way. Unless she also wants answers from-"

There was heavy footsteps from behind Fujino, and she stopped talking, in case the approaching person wasn't supposed to hear anything.

"I'm back." Arisawa's voice came from behind Fujino, as she walked closer. She still sounded somewhat upset, but less so now, fortunately. "Did I miss anything important?"

"Asagami's heading to either the graveyard or the abandoned hospital to look for any signs of the person making the fairies." Kurosaki filled her in. "I'm grabbing the artificial soul and finding Urahara and finding out just how much danger Ichigo's in right now and how much he's been in while I didn't know."

"Have fun with that." Arisawa muttered under her breath, low enough that most people would have missed it if they hadn't been using their ears to compensate for a loss of eyesight. Then, speaking up, she continued. "Let me know if anything important comes up. I'll escort Asagami, I suppose."

"Thank you, Arisawa." The purple haired girl replied.

"Where are we going first, then?" Arisawa asked.

Fujino took a moment to consider it. If the person making the fairies really was at one of those locations, an abandoned hospital was actually a building, so it could make sense that they would set up base there. Then again, doing so inside the location that drew Hollow attention might be problematic.

It might have been more convenient to just be near the area, and under that logic, the graveyard was just as valid a pick as the hospital. If the culprit needed to enter the location to get whatever they needed, even moreso, considering a graveyard would be easier to enter than a building people weren't supposed to go into.

Weighing the options for a moment, Asagami reached her decision.

 **[X] The Abandoned Hospital**  
 **[x] The Graveyard**


	13. Chapter 13

**[X] The Abandoned Hospital**

"Here we are." Arisawa declared.

The walk had been in silence, discounting when Arisawa had to give Fujino instructions. It had been a bit of a walk, but honestly, it only felt like it took a long time because neither of the girls had really talked during the walk.

Fujino didn't want to be the one to bring up the topic of Arisawa's friends not telling her about the supernatural earlier. She didn't want to look like she was being rude, and if she didn't mind her own business, she might accidentally offend Arisawa. If Arisawa wanted to talk about it, she would raise the subject, wouldn't she?

Though on the other hand, perhaps Arisawa wasn't raising the issue because she didn't want to come across as rude by bothering other people with her own problems. That was a possibility as well. If that was the case, Asagami didn't know what to do about it, but perhaps she should keep it under consideration.

But then, now was really not the time to think about that topic. They had arrived at the abandoned hospital. There was a chance that whoever was making the fairies was, or has been, here recently. If they were here, or if there was any evidence here that would held with determining what was going on, then it was important not to miss anything by having thoughts wander to irrelevant topics.

"Uh, Asagami?" Arisawa suddenly asked, her tone suddenly shifting into confusion. "You know how I could kinda see vague shimmers and stuff for ghosts and fairies?"

"Yes?" Fujino asked, prompting her to continue. She was clearly going somewhere with this, and if she wasn't panicking, then it probably wasn't urgent.

"How do I put this..." Arisawa muttered. "Is there a reason why I can suddenly see them in a lot more detail?"

Asagami paused.

"That is odd." Fujino mused. "Can you tell me what you're seeing?"

"There's a ghost over in the distance." Arisawa replied. "There's a chain attached to it. It's looking at the hospital and tugging at the chain but nothings happening."

Fujino briefly considered flicking on her clairvoyance to confirm the sight, but decided against it.

"That's strange." Fujino noted. "I don't know enough about the topic of seeing ghosts to know if it means anything, but it is strange."

"Yeah." Arisawa replied. "Well, at least now I'll be able to see if there's any fairies around, I suppose. This is weird, though."

"Let's enter then, shall we?" Fujino shifted the subject. "Where is the entrance?"

"Just walk forward until you hit the building, then turn right and walk." Arisawa advised, still sounding distracted. She was just paying attention to the ghost, wasn't she?

Tapping her cane forward as she walked until she found the wall of the abandoned hospital, Fujino took the turn and alternated tapping her cane against the wall and the ground in front of her, ensuring the ground was clear and she found the door.

"It's not sealed off is it, Arisawa?" Fujino asked.

"It's fine." Arisawa replied, not sounding like she was paying attention.

Moving onward, Fujino found the door, and pushed against it. Surprisingly, it did actually open. Fujino would have thought it would at least be locked.

"I'm going in now Arisawa."

"Right, right." Arisawa replied, and footsteps started coming towards Fujino.

Fujino walked into the hospital, and immediately, the staleness in the air tempted her to walk back out. It took a moment for her lungs to adjust to the air, and she moved further inwards, giving room for Arisawa to step in.

"So this place is meant to be magic then?" Arisawa asked. "Is there any way we would noti- Gah!"

"Arisawa?" Fujino asked, a note of panic in her voice. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Arisawa replied. "It's just, jeez, what was that? I walked in and it felt like all of my bones shook a bit. Hurt a bit, but it was only a moment of pain. Did you feel anything like that?"

"I didn't notice anything like that." Fujino replied truthfully, though she knew that Arisawa was lacking context on why she wouldn't. "That doesn't mean it was nothing. Perhaps it was some kind of magic thing, and it didn't effect me for the same reason the fairies can't take my memories?"

Or she didn't feel it because her clairvoyance wasn't on so she couldn't really feel pain from anything, but for all Fujino knew she could be telling the truth. Or perhaps it really was Arisawa noticing something strange.

Though, that said, Arisawa seemed to be in a better mood than she had been before they walked to the hospital. Had the extra time and distraction given her time to take her mind off of it, or was she just putting on more of an act now to hide it?

Hopefully the first.

Walking forward a bit more, Fujino kept checking the path in front of her. "Arisawa, are there any signs with directions around this place?"

"I don't see any." Arisawa replied. "And this is kind of a big building. Where should we look?"

"How big is the building, again?" Fujino asked. "I'm not sure if it was ever mentioned."

"It's pretty big." Arisawa confirmed. "Several floors and wings. It might take a while to search everything. Especially since I doubt there's any working elevators here..."

Perhaps it would be wise to use her clairvoyance, then. It would only take a moment to look through the entire building.

Taking a breath, Fujino closed her unseeing eyes, and opened her figurative third eye. Her vision activated and expanded, and for a fraction of a second, she felt a jolt of pain rattle down her bones. She savoured it for a moment, before looking around.

Momentarily, she looked around to ensure there were no Hollows nearby. None were in or around the building, and so Fujino focused her gaze to the building itself. Scanning through it, she looked through the empty floors and rooms. Nothing, for so long, but darkness. Some cobwebs and insects. Parts of the building near the roof looked damaged for some reason, but apart from that, the upper floors were empty.

Eventually, she saw something off, and upon focusing on it, Fujino confirmed her suspicions. A room filled with paper and tools and all sorts of other equipment. She didn't get a good look at the room, but once she knew it was there, she just needed to see the path.

"I know where it is." Fujjino declared, deactivating her clairvoyance. "First floor, near the back of the building."

"Psychic powers are really useful, huh." Arisawa noted. "Well, let's go."

The two of them walked through the building for some time, with a few detours when they took turns into dead ends and needed to backtrack, but had been able to find it eventually.

Pausing momentarily by the door, Fujino considered what she should do once she entered the room.

There wasn't anyone in there, but with the amount of stuff left in the room, it would be a necessity to look at what was actually in there. And with that in mind, it might be important that Fujino actually used her clairvoyance, so she could read what was on the paper and see what everything was.

And if she was going to be in that mindset, then it would be in her best interest to keep Arisawa out of the room.

"Arisawa?" Fujino asked. "I may need to use my abilities to examine the evidence in the room, and Urahara had mentioned it attracts Hollows. Would you mind watching the halls so you can call out if I don't feel them coming?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I could do that." Arisawa replied. "Will you be able to find anything just with your abilities?"

"I'll let you know if I need you." Asagami answered, as she stepped into the room.

The door shut behind her, and taking another breath, Fujino activated her ESP once again.

Looking through the room, Asagami searched for anything that could be relevant. Nearly immediately, she noticed something. By the back of the room, with some distance away from everything else, was a collection of jars against the wall. Each was labelled with a name, and bar one, they had a fairy stored inside, bouncing away from the glass.

That would confirm it, then. Whoever was making the fairies had set up base here, and she could find some clue as to who it was here.

Taking a moment to focus on the names, Fujino read them internally.

Three names in, and it occurred to her that the names on the jars were familiar. In fact, weren't they the same names as people in Keita's gang? The ones who had-

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The jars shattered as Fujino's power bent around them, shattering the glass and crushing the fairies within. She noted, momentarily, that they seemed more solid then the other's she had seen before, but they died all the same. Fujino smiled softly as her power tore apart the various fairies, and that simple joy was enough that she didn't even linger on how the amount of jars was exactly equal to the number of people she had killed.

"Asagami?" Arisawa called from outside. "What was that?"

Ah. Shattering glass was loud, wasn't it?

"There were some fairies in jars in here." Fujino replied. "I was dealing with them."

"Got it." Arisawa replied. "Did you get them all?"

"I did." Fujino confirmed. "Is it still all clear outside?"

"It is." Arisawa nodded slightly outside the room as she spoke, and Fujino let out a breath.

Still, this had to have confirmed it. There was the memory-consuming fairies in jars with the names and number identical to the murders Fujino had committed. Did the one who had made the fairies know about Fujino in advance? Did they know she would come after them? Or, given that they had been in Reien Academy, was it simply that they had gathered information on Fujino and kept it on hand just in case?

It was worry, that someone else could have found out about Fujino's history so easily. What exactly had happened, though? Had the fairies eaten the memories of whatever ghosts her victims left behind?

Perhaps she was lingering on that for too long. Asagami needed to find out anything she could about the current scenario.

Refocusing her gaze, Asagami looked towards the various papers in the room, scattered across the ground. She noticed a textbook from Reien, and what looked like a map, which had circled Karakura Town on it. There was another book near it that had been left open, and the writing inside it was strange. For some reason, it looked as if several different languages had been used in the writing. German, English, Russian, Arabic, and Japanese words had been written, all in the same page. Was this some kind of code, to keep information hidden?

The Japanese phrasing mentioned Karakura Town, and Fujino took a moment to focus in on the kanji more. If she was reading it properly, and the sentences before and after it didn't change the context, it seemed to refer to Karakura town as being spiritual land, in which the barrier between life and death was fragile.

Moving over towards the page and flipping to another page with her cane, Asagami kept reading. The page was covered in languages that Asagami couldn't recognise, but after flicking through a few pages, she found a page with other various languages, with another person's handwriting making notes of translation.

It was disjointed, and several points hadn't been translated, but Fujino saw some wording. Communion with dead spirits, binding the dead, necromancy. So, whoever it was wanted to talk to somebody who had died? But then, how did Misaya play into this?

An idea came over Asagami, as she shifted her psychic gaze towards the Reien textbook. Trying to look within the pages was pointless, as there was no light within the pages, but upon walking over towards it and using her cane to shift the page, she found the name on the inside of the cover.

Tachibana Kaori. The name of Ouji's friend, the girl who had died months ago. When Misaya had disappeared, someone had noticed Tachibana's old things disappear as well. Looking around near the textbook, Fujino saw a hairbrush, a scrap of cloth that resembled the sleeve of her uniform, and a necklace. Were all of these also Tachibana's things?

It didn't matter. There was one item here which Fujino knew belonged to Tachibana. And with that in mind, it was easy to put together a guess of what happened.

Was this Misaya's doing? Was she the one who had created the fairies, after all? Had she come to Karakura seeking some way to talk to her lost friend?

But then, if that was the case, that raised further questions. Why was that book written in so many different languages, in a different handwriting? Why had Misaya disappeared the day the teacher had died, if the evidence implied she was here to find the ghost of a girl who had died months ago? If she was the one who had made the fairies, when had she learnt?

There was a lot of questions Asagami didn't have the answer to yet, and this room may have some answers to that question. All she had to do was decide where she had to look first.

Misaya clearly intended to return to this place. She had left too much behind to simply abandon this place, given how much evidence she had left behind. And if she wasn't here, she could be back at any moment. Fujino wouldn't have the chance to examine the room if Misaya arrived, so for now, she had to prioritise. What would give the most information?

 **[X] Look through the coded and translated book. Even if most of it was incomprehensible, some of it could be important.**  
 **[X] Look closely at the map. Perhaps other important locations would be marked, which may prove useful.**


	14. Chapter 14

**[X] Look closely at the map. Perhaps other important locations would be marked, which may prove useful.**

There was one complication to observing the map, Fujino found. Specifically, that it was the first time she had seen a map of Karakura. It took some effort to look at the map and actually say where that location would be, in relation to the abandoned hospital.

Observing the marked locations, she tried to identify a few of them, to see if she could get any idea of where she was. There was a few locations that had been circled and crossed out, including one that was labelled as a hospital, which presumably wasn't this current abandoned location. Two of the locations marked looked like they were in residential areas, one was marked near a shipping district, and one appeared to be a hotel.

Was that the hotel Fujino had stayed at? Were those markings supposed to represent people with the supernatural? One of those locations should be around where Urahara's shop would be, so that was a possibility. But then, what about the other locations? Tatsuki and Kon had to live somewhere, so the houses could belong to them, but what about the hospital?

Then there were the faint lines on the map, leading to the corner. Down at the corner, there was something written in a language Fujino couldn't identify, what it was. Considering the book full of different languages and translations, perhaps it was something that Misaya couldn't translate, but could determine the context of?

From the looks of things, one of the lines did lead towards the abandoned hospital, so perhaps it was the Ley Line thing that Kon had mentioned. In which case, there were a few more around, but they didn't appear to be anywhere noteworthy for mundane reasons.

Apart from that, the only mark was one that didn't look intentional. There was a smudge over the graveyard, which Fujino already knew was likely important because of Kon. Perhaps it was a coincidence, but honestly, writing something off as a coincidence would be a mistake, most likely.

Looking over the map some more, Fujino tried to memorise what all the marked locations were, and where they were in relation to everything else. She didn't think she had good odds of remembering where most of those Ley Lines were, but if she did, then knowing where they were would be useful for future reference. If something went wrong here, and Fujino didn't meet Misaya here, or if she had misunderstood the situation somehow, then knowing the remaining points of supernatural relevance would matter, she decided.

There was a bang at the door, and Fujino shifted her gaze past the wall and towards Arisawa.

"Asagami?" The girl asked. "Uh... There's a fairy around here."

Fujino took a moment to search, before she found it. It was flitting around, away from Arisawa, towards the entrance of the building.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The fairy tore apart around the midsection, and it's body faded away as it's two halves fell towards the floor.

Now, were there any more?

Expanding her vision, Fujino looked for any more trace of the fairies, and shifted her vision. As her eyes passed over the entrance, she stopped. There was a girl standing in the entrance to the building.

Her hair was purple, and cut haphazardly short, as if done in a hurry. Her uniform looked unwashed and was covered in uneven patches of dirt, but was still recognisable as the same one Fujino wore.

Ouji Misaya was here.

Fujino turned her body towards the door, and deactivated her ESP. Talking to Ouji would be difficult enough as it was, so it was for the best that she took back her normal mindset.

Sensation faded away, and Fujino felt forward with her cane, finding the door and tapping against it.

"Arisawa." Fujino began. "We have a guest."

The door opened in front of Fujino, and the blind girl tested the area in front of her before walking out.

"What do you mean?" Arisawa asked. "Who's here."

"Ouji Misaya." Fujino replied. "She's here."

Arisawa didn't reply for a moment, and Fujino started heading towards the entrance.

It would, perhaps, be wise to fill Arisawa in on what she had discovered.

"By the way, Arisawa." Fujino began. "I should mention what I had deduced from that room."

"I take it you learnt something important." Arisawa noted.

"If I'm right." Fujino replied. "As far as I can tell, Ouji really is the one who created the fairies."

"...Well, it's nice to know that in advance, I suppose." Arisawa mentioned. "Should I just wait here? Not get close?"

"I want to try to talk to her." Fujino replied. "And I feel like it would be best to be blunt about that. I feel like that if you hide away and any of her familiars stumble across you, she might think you're a problem. If she doesn't want to talk with you around, she can ask you to leave, but I think it would matter, whether or not we're open about this."

Arisawa took some time to speak again. "Right, you said her friend died recently, right? So... Basically, if you're right, all of this is happening because she's not coping well and you don't want to risk spooking her?"

"That is the plan, yes." Fujino confirmed. "Of course, this is reliant on the fact that I've drawn the right conclusion, and there's enough about this situation that I don't understand that it is possible that there's something I'm missing."

"Like what?" Arisawa asked.

"Like where Misaya would have learnt any of this." Fujino replied. "There was a book in that room, which had some information on the supernatural, written in a dozen different languages, but where would Misaya have gotten it?"

"You're sure it was hers?" Arisawa asked.

"It was with a textbook with her name on it, and other stuff that would only make sense belonging to Ouji." Misaya replied. "And she's here now. If it doesn't belong to her, I have no idea what the situation is. We'll ask her about it in a moment."

"So how much further is sh-"

Arisawa stopped talking as slow footsteps echoed down the hall, and the two girls stopped walking, as the footsteps came closer. For a few seconds, Fujino just waited, as the footsteps came closer. It sounded like there was a turn in the hall ahead, and once the walker turned the corner, it'd be time to start talking.

The footsteps stopped, and Ouji Misaya spoke. "Asagami."

"Ouji." Fujino replied in kind. "It's good to talk with you again."

"Why are you here?" Misaya asked. "I know you've been looking for me, but why?"

"You disappeared suddenly and nobody knew why." Fujino explained. "People are worried."

"Have we ever talked, outside of class?" Misaya asked. "You barely know me."

"I could help." Fujino explained. "So I did."

"If I wanted people to come and find me, I would have told people where I was going." Misaya said. "I don't need help."

Arisawa coughed. "Uh, quick question. Did you always look so gaunt, or is that the stress?"

There was a moment of silence after that, as Asagami processed that comment. She didn't look at Misaya too closely while her ESP was active, but now that she thought about it, Misaya did look like she was in a bad state.

"...I'm busy." Misaya replied curtly. "I can eat and rest when I'm done."

She hasn't been eating?

"Ouji." Fujino spoke up. She needed to push this topic more, but if they were going to properly talk, she needed to make sure everything was properly understood. "The book with the translations, that map, those are yours, aren't they?"

"Yes." Misaya replied. Now that Arisawa had made a point of Misaya not looking good, and Fujino was paying attention, she noticed that the way the girl spoke sounded exhausted as well. "I know what you're trying to do, so don't waste time. I have magecraft, and I know about your ESP."

Even if she had expected it, the sudden declaration of someone knowing of Fujino's ability threw her for a loop, and it took her a moment to adapt to that. In the time she was still silent, Misaya kept talking.

"All I wanted to do was keep anyone from finding me." Misaya said. "And why wouldn't I? The two of you managed to track me down with barely anything."

"I wouldn't have come looking if you hadn't sent the fairies after everyone." Arisawa snapped. "Don't be surprised when people look into you sending memory eaters after them."

Misaya sighed.

"Arisawa, hold on for a moment." Fujino interrupted. "Misaya, I think you should come back to Reien."

"I will." Misaya replied. "Just as soon as I'm done."

"Done what?" Arisawa asked. "What are you-"

"Raising the dead?" Fujino asked.

"Wha-" Misaya sputtered out, before coughing. "How did you..."

She trailed off, so Fujino responded. "I saw the book in the room over there, Misaya. Notes on necromancy. And you came to a town where the dead linger so soon after the death of Kurogiri-"

"Not him." Snapped Misaya suddenly. "He deserved what was coming to him."

The sudden hostility in her voice caught Fujino off surprise, but the last time she let herself be thrown in this conversation, it took her a while to enter it again. This time, Fujino picked up right where she left off.

"-With several of Tachibana's possessions, after she died months ago." Fujino corrected. "Enough people have died recently for you to mourn, and considering everything else, what you're trying to do is obvious."

"...Well, good for you, Asagami." Misaya replied. "You managed to figure out my scheme. I want to see my friend again. How dastardly of me."

"Would that even work?" Arisawa asked. "She didn't die in Karakura, so why would her ghost be arou-"

Arisawa stopped talking suddenly, as Misaya started storming forward. Fujino held out her cane at an angle which, if she was predicting their positions correctly, should have been between them. Misaya stopped walking, and continued talking instead.

"You should stop talking." Misaya's voice was low, and threatening on some level. "You don't have anything to do with any of this. Why are you even here?"

"Because you made this my problem when your fairies started coming after me." Arisawa replied.

"Don't lie to me." Misaya cut back. "My fairies were watching. You got involved with Asagami because you didn't have anything better to do. The excuses you've given me were things you found out later."

"I-"

"Ouji." Fujino interrupted Arisawa. The small conflict between the two of them was derailing this conversation, and Fujino was already struggling to think of how to convince her fellow student to come back home, without the hostility complicating things. "Tachibana's been dead for months. Why are you choosing now to run away and try to bring her back? What happened?"

Misaya took her time with the response, presumably still angry at Arisawa. "I hadn't realised the possibility until I found Kurogiri's notes. I was too distracted."

Kurogiri's notes? So he had been connected to this in some way?

"Kurogiri Satsuki was a Magus." Ouji explained. "He was the one who made the fairies originally. His, I couldn't properly control after he died, but the ones he had stored with potentially relevant memories are good templates to recreate. And they stored some interesting memories in them, too."

Misaya's voice took a turn at that comment, and Fujino's grip on her hand tightened again.

"I noticed when you destroyed them, Asagami. I presume you recognise the names." Ouji continued. "I had to do some guessworks with the notes and their translations for the full context, but the memories taken from the victim's ghosts were rather clear. Clear enough that feeding one to one of those violent souls overwrote it, at least."

Asagami's hand was shaking, and she heard Ouji chuckle softly. "What's the matter, Asagami? You've gone pale. Do you have a problem, with me seeing those memories?"

"...So you know, then." Fujino said sadly, as she lowered her cane and put it on the ground again. She pushed down hard, to hopefully make the shaking less obvious, as she turned her head in Misaya's direction. "What of it?"

"I don't know much about you, Asagami." Ouji began. "But I know what you did, and I know that you stopped. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'd say you regret what you did."

She wasn't saying it, Fujino noted. Was it because Arisawa was here? Was this going to end in blackmail?

Still, she wasn't wrong, and if she co-operated, perhaps Misaya would remain open enough to conversation to listen. So, reluctantly, Fujino nodded.

"In that case, I'm sure you understand." Misaya explained. "Asagami, I killed Hayama Hideo."

Fujino froze, the sudden confession catching her off guard. The teacher who had disappeared, just after Tachibana died?

"I hadn't intended to, at the time." Ouji continued. "But he's why Kaori's dead. He, the rest of them, they-"

Misaya cut herself off suddenly, before starting over, her voice sounding strained. "They did something obscene. Kaori's death was self-immolation, because of what they had forced upon her. When I had found out what happened, Hayama tried to escape, and I stopped him. I killed him, and I felt satisfied."

"You-" Fujino began, before Misaya interrupted with her own continuation.

"Once the shock wore off, and I'd realised what I'd done, I panicked." Misaya continued. "That could have been the end of it. I would have turned myself in, plead guilty to manslaughter, and this could have ended. But only one of Kaori's killers had been punished, and Kurogiri was there to cover for me, and enable me. I was going to kill them all until I was stopped."

Even without sight, Fujino was able to feel Misaya staring at her as she continued.

"You understand, don't you?" Misaya asked. "How I'd regret that?"

"This isn't about grief, is it?" Asagami asked. "Not fully, at least. It's guilt. You want to undo death and bring back Kaori so you can feel that you did something good in this situation."

"Perceptive, aren't you?" Ouji noted bitterly. "Yes, Asagami. That's it. Now leave me to it, please. It doesn't matter if I'm suffering. If you understand my guilt, then surely you can understand that."

Her words gave Asagami pause. Even if she disagreed with what Misaya was doing, the core idea behind it wasn't that different to what Asagami was doing. Her actions were driven by guilt, and a desire to make things right. Though, with Misaya, she had a specific goal in mind, some thing she thought would erase her sense of guilt. If Fujino was offered some way to prove her murderous existence was acceptable, how far would she go, to claim it?

But then, guilt wasn't something so easily washed away. And more than that, what Misaya wanted to do was, as far as Asagami could tell, impossible. But how could she say that?

At the very least, she had to say something.

"Ouji." Fujino began again. "You're not going to do any good if you burn yourself out. You said you haven't been eating, or resting. Whatever you try to do, whether it's possible or not, if you don't take care of yourself, you'll die before you manage it.

"...Maybe that's for the best, then." Misaya answered.

Alarmed, Fujino stepped forward. "Ouji-"

"So you still won't stop?" Misaya asked. "Very well, then. Consider this a threat then. The next time we meet, people will start to learn, about your dirty little secret, Asagami."

"What makes you think you can just go?" Arisawa asked.

In response, Misaya snapped her fingers, and the wall was smashed open.

Alarmed at the sudden sound and the chunks of building hitting her, Asagami focused her mind's eye, and activated her ESP.

The first thing she saw was Misaya, bolting out the hole that had been formed in the wall. The second was what had left the hole.

A Hollow stood between Fujino and Misaya, with a fairy resting in the hole on it's chest. The ghost looked more monstrous than any previous Hollow Asagami had seen, it's appearance showing a distinct lack of humanity, or individuality. It was simply a beast.

No, more accurately, a weapon. Had the fairy erased the lingering will, and turned it into it's puppet?

That thought was put on hold, as Fujino processed the third thing of note in this situation. Arisawa had taken the brunt of the building wall, and the brunt of the force. She had collapsed to the ground, and was bleeding.

Worry flashed through Fujino's mind, even as the pain from the bruises forming along her body started to sting at her.

Focusing on the Hollow, Fujino's gaze narrowed.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's neck twisted around, and popped, and blood exploded outwards as it collapsed. Fujino muttered her incantation again as she tore the fairy in it's chest apart, and the Hollow's form began to shimmer and reshape itself, before it faded away.

Blood splattered on Fujino's cheek, and she dabbed at it with her left hand, smiling. Such force, and the moment she had willed it's life to end-

No. Focus.

Misaya was still running. At the speed she was running, Asagami wouldn't be able to catch her, not easily. But she could follow, and the moment Misaya tired herself out, Fujino would have the advantage. She could see anywhere in town, and would be able to follow.

Taking a step forward, Asagami's foot touched something made of flesh, and she suddenly remembered. Arisawa.

Looking at the girl again, Fujino checked her wounds. They were fairly bad, and given how short a time the Hollow had to inflict them, Asagami was suddenly very glad she had killed it immediately. She definitely had a few broken bones, at least, and she was bleeding in several places. She was still conscious, but barely, and Fujino doubted it would last.

Arisawa needed help, and Fujino could help her find it. But in doing so, she'd be giving herself too much to do. There was no way that Fujino could keep track of Misaya and help Arisawa.

Surely, the exploding wall would have created enough noise that someone else would have heard it, and come to investigate, right? Someone else would be running in, and help Arisawa when they see her. Surely...

Even with her altered common sense through her ESP, Fujino found that explanation hard to believe. Flickering off her sight and reaching down, Fujino offered Arisawa her hand.

"Arisawa." Fujino said. "I'll help you, we'll see how far we can walk, if we can find help."

"Don't..." Arisawa wheezed. "Get-"

"You're in too poor a shape to just leave here." Asagami replied. "I'll be able to find Misaya again later. I need to help you now."

There was a second where nothing happened, before Arisawa groaned, and her hand wrapped around Asagami's. Fujino pulled her up, and repositioned her cane so Arisawa could lean on it.

"Can you walk?" She asked.

"Leg hurts." Arisawa replied. "But... Yeah."

"Let's go find help, then." Asagami continued, setting off.

The two girls began to wander, for some time. By the time Arisawa's consciousness began slipping, they were close to-

 **[X] The Kurosaki Clinic**  
 **[X] The Urahara Shop**


	15. Chapter 15

**[X] The Urahara Shop**

As the two girls walked, the only sound was that of Arisawa muttering directions. Her voice came softer over time, with her instructions coming slower and further apart over time. Somehow, nobody noticed the two girls walking. Or, at least, if they did, they weren't acknowledging them.

On the one hand, that did mean that there wasn't any difficult questions asked. On the other, with the state Arisawa was in, difficult questions were the last of her concern.

Arisawa's weight shifted suddenly on Fujino's shoulder, and the blind girl stopped moving, waiting for the other girl to confirm she was able to move without falling over. As it was, it felt like the entirety of Arisawa's weight was leaning on Fujino's shoulder, and her attempts to push away were weak.

Did Ouji Misaya know, when she set the Hollow on them, that Arisawa would be hurt this badly? Or did she not care? It was clear from the conversation that Misaya considered the incident she had been involved with to be a regretful one, and her actions were motivated by her guilt, and that was simply from almost killing innocent people. But then, Misaya barely seemed to be in the right mind, during that conversation.

She said she hadn't eaten since coming to Karakura. Had she slept at all during that time? If she wouldn't take the time of her day to eat, would she want to waste time sleeping? She was certainly acting self destructive enough that Fujino would believe she would think that was a good idea.

It occurred to Fujino that Arisawa had stopped trying to shift her weight, and hadn't said anything in a while.

"Arisawa?" Fujino asked. "Are you okay?"

Arisawa didn't respond, nor did she move. So she'd finally lost consciousness, then.

This was a problem. Fujino was blind, and didn't think she could carry Arisawa while moving, let alone while using her cane to see. So if Arisawa couldn't help move, then Fujino was stuck.

In that case, Fujino needed to get help. Her choice, then, were to either wait for someone to notice them, and let Arisawa bleed, or to use her Clairvoyance and try to find someone who knew about the supernatural. Kon, or Karin, or Urahara or anyone like that.

Closing her eyes, Fujino let her clairvoyance activate again.

Ignoring the slight pain in her arm, likely just her muscles straining to hold Arisawa's weight, Fujino shifted her gaze to see if anyone was nearby.

Oh, that was convenient. They were only around the corner from the store where they had talked with Urahara. Looking inside, Fujino immediately noticed the two children in the front of the store. What were their names again? Hanakari and Tsumugiya, wasn't it?

She'll draw their attention first, then.

The boy, Hanakari, was holding a broom in one hand, and holding a box under her shoulder with the other. He tapped on a label on the box, as he said something to the girl, Tsumugiya. Fujino really wished that her ability would let her understand what they were saying, since the only clues she had in that regard were the way the boy shook his head and tapped the box again, whenever the girl spoke.

Well, she didn't need to know what they were saying right now. It would be nice to know so she would know if they were coming, but she needed to get their attention more than another.

Fujino looked at the broom the boy was holding, and picked the point furthest from the two children.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The end of the broom with the brush cracked, and then snapped, some wood splinters scattering across the floor as it did so. The two children looked towards it, and the boy dropped his broom suddenly, as well as the box in his other arm. When the box hit the ground, it must have made some kind of noise, judging by how the boy flinched.

Oh. Was there something fragile in there?

Well, that should get their attention, at least.

The boy looked at the broken broom and box on the ground for a second, before looking up and shouting something. The girl, meanwhile, turned away, and started walking towards what looked like another broom.

Was she just going to clean up? That wasn't what Fujino needed right now. Focusing her gaze on the other broom-

The thought was interrupted with a sudden movement, which Fujino saw, upon refocusing her vision, to be a door opening. Tsukabishi Tessai walked through the door, looking around.

Oh, good. He was smart enough to put information together, from what Fujino had seen. He should be able to tell that the reason things had been snapped were Fujino trying to get someone's attention, and then he could come and get Arisawa-

On reflection, it occurred to Fujino that Tsukabishi had no way of knowing where Fujino was, other than 'Around.' And she doesn't think she ever demonstrate her ability in front of any of the people in that room. They might not know she is responsible. This was not a well thought out plan.

It was better than just doing nothing, she supposed, but it was still troublesome. Which, Fujino mused, seemed to apply to a lot of the actions she was taking lately.

She'd just have to hope that, whatever happened, it worked out. Hopefully before Arisawa lost too much blood.

Speaking of which, the weight on Fujino's shoulder was growing uncomfortable. The sensation was one Fujino wasn't used to, and she enjoyed the fact that she could feel it, but it was distracting.

Focusing again, Fujino watched as Tsukabishi waved his hands around the room. As his hands stilled, the broken shards of the broom formed together again, and the two broken sticks fixed each other. The two kids watched, and the door behind the group opened again.

Urahara, Kurosaki and Kon stepped out. So they had managed to talk, then? That was good. Urahara said something, Tsukabishi said something, and Fujino decided she may as well stop paying attention to who's mouths were moving when she couldn't understand them anyway.

So instead, Fujino simply observed the group, up until Urahara tapped his cane on the ground. Nothing happened for a moment after that, until a shiver ran down Fujino's spine. Urahara's cane was suddenly raised and pointed in Fujino's direction, and Kon ran out of the building.

Whatever that was, it was convenient.

Once she had confirmed Kon was on his way, Fujino shut off her clairvoyance, and waited. Footsteps echoed around her as sensation faded away, and after a moment, the soul in the borrowed body arrived.

"Asag-" He began, before cutting himself off. "Tatsuki!"

"Hello, Kon." Fujino began. "I don't suppose you could carry Arisawa for me?"

"What happened?" Kon asked, his voice getting closer as he spoke, and the weight on Fujino's shoulder being removed as he concluded his question.

"It might take some time to explain." Fujino replied. "I think it would be best to take her to Urahara, first. He has some healing ability, right?"

"I- Alright." Kon replied. "Are you hurt? Do you need help getting there?"

"It's only around the corner." Fujino replied. "And I'm fine. It'll just take a minute."

"I'll see you there, then." Kon finished, before leaving. Taking a moment to feel around with her cane, Fujino set off towards where she remembered Urahara's store being.

Left to herself as she walked, Fujino had more time to think. Inevitably, her thoughts drifted once again, to what had happened.

Ouji Misaya was motivated by guilt. The feeling that what she had been doing was wrong, and she needed to do something to make up for it. She had compared herself to Asagami, and it wasn't an inaccurate comparison, either. Why had Fujino come to Karakura Town in the first place? Why was she looking for Ouji? Because it was something she could do, however inconvenient and difficult it was, and doing something to help someone like that was something Fujino felt she had to do.

Of course, the two girls weren't exactly the same. Ouji Misaya was trying to assuage the regret she felt over nearly killing a class full of students to avenge her friend. She had killed Hayama, and considering how poorly she had reacted to the name and what she had said he had done, it wouldn't surprise Fujino if Kurogiri's death was her doing as well. But Hayama's death had been an accident, and considering that Kurogiri had apparently enabled Misaya during her attempted massacre, his death may not have left her with much lingering guilt.

It was a weird thought, to think that someone who had died recently might have enabled murders. That someone who had been a teacher at the school Fujino attended would be that kind of person. But she could dwell on that later, if at all. For now, Fujino wanted to consider Ouji's circumstances some more.

As far as she could understand, it was the near-massacre of her classmates that filled Misaya with the most guilt. None of them had died, but Fujino could understand how the actual circumstances of the victim mattered less than what was going through her head while planning the killings. Looking at her own victims objectively, the vast majority of them, as well as the one who had escaped, could be said to have brought it on themselves. Fujino had been able to justify her actions until her encounter with Ryougi, after all.

The reason Fujino felt the weight of her sins, and the reason Ouji felt hers, wasn't because of the end result. Rather, it was what she wanted to do. What she had thought.

This, Fujino mused, was the one major difference between herself and Misaya. Misaya had been enabled and manipulated, from what she had said. For Fujino, her actions were her own. Her desires were her own, without any outside influence. Ouji sought to mitigate the guilt of one planned action. Asagami sought to mitigate the guilt of her own existence.

Even if Asagami could understand Ouji's point of view, she couldn't accept it. In the end, Fujino had done far worse than what Misaya had done. If Misaya had set her sights on a goal as impossible as resurrection as the one thing that could make amends for her action, then what hope would Fujino have, of ever being able to justify her life?

Well, perhaps that was a selfish way of looking at it. And perhaps Fujino's conclusion was selfish as well. But at the end of the day, she didn't think Misaya deserved to suffer. She had lost a friend, accidentally caused a death, and then someone came along to convince her to go further. That shouldn't be comparable to someone who wanted to kill because they felt happy to use their power to end a life.

Though, right now, Fujino should stay focused. Arisawa was injured, and Misaya wasn't here.

Reaching what she presumed to be the Urahara store, Fujino knocked on the door.

A moment passed, before it opened, and Kurosaki Karin spoke.

"Asagami." She began, her voice moving as she stepped aside. "What happened?"

"We found Ouji." Fujino replied. "We talked. She's responsible for the fairies, by the way."

"The girl you're looking for?" Kurosaki asked. "Why?"

"I'd rather not divulge all of her personal issues to a stranger." Asagami replied. "I promise I'll have the situation resolved soon."

"So how did this lead to Tatsuki being injured?" Kon asked, from the other side of the room.

"Ouji didn't want to come home." Asagami replied. "So, as far as I can tell, she took control of a Hollow and set it on us. She ran in the confusion and Arisawa was hurt."

"That... Doesn't seem good." Kon noted. "You're not just saying everything about her, so I presume she didn't come across as a bad guy when you were talking with her. I don't suppose you'd be able to share what her motive there is?"

"I doubt Ouji fully understood what the consequences would be." Fujino explained. "As far as I can tell, she's not in the right mind. I have my doubts she's slept since she came to Karakura, and she outright said she hadn't eaten. From what I understand, she simply wanted to leave, took the easiest path to keep us distracted, and didn't realise that someone could have been hurt."

"...Sounds rough." Karin muttered. "You better hope you're right. If she did want to hurt Tatsuki and you're giving her the benefit of the doubt, that could be you, next."

"Uh, also." Kon spoke up. "Tatsuki was leaning on you for a while, right? And she was bleeding pretty bad."

What did that have to- Oh.

"My clothes are all bloody, aren't they?" Fujino asked.

That could be a problem. Fujino would need to go back to the hotel to get more clothes, and there would be people who notice that there's blood in her clothes.

"Also your face a bit." Kon noted. "And your hair."

She couldn't let people see her covered in blood. Especially not somewhere where she'd have to come and go a few more times before she could leave Karakura and go home.

Another door opened, and a small voice spoke. Tsumugiya, Fujino remembered. "Asagami."

"Hello." Fujino replied.

"Urahara will be with you shortly." She said. "Once Arisawa has been healed a bit. Is there anything you need?"

"Is there a shower around here?" She asked. "I might need to get this blood out of my hair. If you have spare clothes that would fit me here somewhere, those would be nice."

The girl took a moment, before she replied.

"There's a shower in the basement." The girl said. "There might be stock of clothes somewhere around here. Do you have a preference?"

"Not really." Asagami replied. "Nothing too revealing or attention grabbing, but otherwise, nothing."

"Okay." The girl said. "The shower is this way."

The girl started moving away from the door, and Asagami followed.

 **Once she has cleaned up the blood, what should Fujino focus on during her talk with Urahara?**

 **[X] Misaya's goal, resurrecting her dead friend. That didn't seem possible, but understanding why might help talk Misaya down.**  
 **[X] What Misaya had done when controlling the Hollow, and how to prevent people near her from being hurt by similar situations.**  
 **[X] Neither- Arisawa should be regaining consciousness soon, and Fujino would prefer to talk to her immediately when she does so.**


	16. Chapter 16

**[X] Misaya's goal, resurrecting her dead friend. That didn't seem possible, but understanding why might help talk Misaya down.**

Freshly cleaned and wearing clothes that felt a tad too large for her, Fujino stepped back into the main room in the store, where everyone was waiting for her last she checked.

"I'm back." She stated, and waited for a reply. When none came, she frowned.

Had they all gone downstairs somewhere? Honestly, that place was large enough that Fujino would believe she missed them somewhere, the amount of space she had to pass through to reach the shower was enough to prove the basement was bigger than the store itself. Or maybe they were in the back and weren't making much noise.

Fujino waited a moment more, before she heard footsteps behind her. Turning, she looked towards the source, and waited for the walker to speak.

"Ah, Asagami." Urahara drawled. "I'd ask if you paid for those, but I already know the answer to that."

Oh. "Sorry?"

"It's fine." Urahara replied. "It's been sitting around for years anyway. My store sells candy and supernatural wares, and it turns out there's not much overlap between those crowds and people looking to buy mundane clothes."

"Thank you, then." Fujino decided. "Your generosity has saved me from a difficult situation."

"I should probably record you saying that." Urahara noted, his voice shifting in a way that gave Fujino the impression he was talking to himself. "I'll give Yoruichi a laugh when she gets back."

Fujino hadn't come here just to clean the blood out of her hair, though. "Is Arisawa okay?"

"She's in one piece." Urahara replied. "Still out, but should be coming around soon. Kurosaki and the Mod Soul are down with her. What happened there, anyway?"

Had Kurosaki and Kon not told him?

"We found Misaya." Fujino began, before something occurred to her. "Ah, I hadn't mentioned her to you before, had I?"

"I'm assuming she's the person you were looking for, important enough that you were willing to put up with Hollow attacks to find her." Urahara answered.

"Yes, that's her." Fujino answered. "She's behind the fairies, by the way."

Thinking it over for a moment, Fujino decided she might need to disclose a lot to Urahara. He did know more about the supernatural, so if he knew what was going on, he'd be able to offer more advice. He had certainly been helpful so far. Still, he only needed to know the relevant matters, and not certain details.

"A friend of hers died a while back, and she hasn't quiet been okay since." Fujino continued. "Since then and now, a lot has happened, and she feels bad about it."

'A lot has happened' was, here, a phrase which meant 'Killed at least one person, possibly two, and planned the murder of several more,' but that was incriminating and didn't relate to the situation beyond explaining Ouji's guilt.

"She's got her information from a Magus in the interim." Fujino explained. "And most of her information has come from there. I saw the book myself, and she's had trouble translating it, but she thinks she can resurrect her friend here. Or at least, wants to believe it."

There was a moment of silence after that, presumably Urahara considering what Fujino had said. Eventually, Fujino decided that she would have to be the one who began the obvious next topic.

"Is that even possible?" Asagami asked. "I don't believe it is, but I'm not the person who knows about these things. I want to talk her into coming home before she hurts herself more than she already has, but she seems sure on her path, and I need to understand more if I'm going to convince her to come back."

Urahara remained silent for a moment more, and then sighed.

"The dead aren't meant to linger." He began, his tone growing sombre. "People have been trying to raise the dead for as long as people have died. It's never worked out, and it's never going to."

"I need to convince Misaya of that." Fujino said. "I don't think she's in a state where just saying it's impossible isn't going to work."

"...How did her friend die?" Urahara asked.

Fujino thought on that, for a moment, before she answered. "Self-immolation, Ouji had said."

"There you go, then." Urahara continued. "Ghosts and Hollows exist because they don't want to go. They linger because there's something they still want to do, something they miss, and it's the most important thing to them. Whatever's happened, if she's burnt herself up, I don't think she has any attachments outweighing whatever motivated her to die."

"So someone who wants to die wouldn't leave anything behind?" Fujino asked for confirmation.

"That's about it." Urahara replied. "Maybe whatever notes the girl has, she's convinced she can do something. Reach into the afterlife and grab the girl's soul before she reincarnates. But that's not going to be an option either. It takes a strong will to linger, in life or after it, and again, someone who's died of their own choice isn't going to want to cling on. Ouji's friend was beyond anyone's help the moment she decided burning herself to death was the only option."

Fujino didn't have anything to say to that.

She had come here with the expectation that raising the dead was impossible, but when put like that, it felt depressing to hear. Misaya wasn't eating and wasn't resting and was ignoring everything to bring back her friend, and she was gone long before Ouji had ever considered it a possibility.

In the end, all the suffering Ouji was going through wasn't going to mean anything.

"Well this got real dark real fast." Urahara suddenly interrupted Fujino's thought process with the sombre note in his voice disappearing as he spoke. "I hope you've gotten enough information out of that, Asagami, because I really don't want to keep talking about that."

"Understandable." Fujino replied, sounding more distant than she had intended. Even with her train of thought interrupted, she was dwelling on what Urahara had said.

"So, is there anything else you wanted to know?" Urahara asked. "Anything else that might be releva-"

There was a knock on the wall near the door the two were standing in, and Fujino turned to face the source as she waited for either Urahara or the knocker to speak.

"Ururu?" Urahara started. "What is it?"

"Arisawa's awake." The girl replied. "Tessai is confirming she's not in pain. He wanted me to let you know."

"Hm." Urahara took a moment to think. "Asagami, I'm going to assume you'll want to check on her first? Talk to her about Ouji?"

"I was hoping to do that at some point." Fujino nodded.

"She's just downstairs." Urahara confirmed. "Ururu, show her the way. I'll wait up here in case we have any customers, can't stay closed all day again."

The girl made a wordless sound of confirmation, and Fujino felt a small hand tap her arm. "Follow me."

"Thank you for your assistance, Urahara." Asagami said.

The owner of the store didn't reply, and as the small girl's footsteps signified the start of her movement, Fujino followed her. The two walked in silence, as they went down some stairs and down a hallway. As they approached the destination, Fujino could hear some murmuring of people talking, muffled through the walls. Eventually, the girl stopped walking, and Fujino stopped as well.

"Waiting room's here." Tsumugiya noted. "Kurosaki and the Mod Soul are waiting inside. Tessai will tell you when you can see Arisawa."

"I see." Asagami noted." Thank you, Tsumugiya."

The girl hummed in satisfaction, then started walking away.

Well, she probably doesn't have much investment in Arisawa, so it makes sense that'd she go to something else now, Fujino mused as she knocked on the door. With the people on the other side alerted to her presence, she opened the door, and walked in.

"Hey, Asagami." Kon noted, a little too familiar for Fujino's tastes, but well meaning enough that reprimanding him would feel rude.

"Hello, Kon." Fujino replied. "Kurosaki, you're here too, right?"

"Yep." The girl replied, some distance away. "Over here."

"What are you two doing, anyway?" Fujino asked.

"Waiting to check on Arisawa." Karin replied. "She's my brother's friend, so it's a bit concerning that she's gone and gotten herself hurt."

"That would be my bad." Fujino apologised. "If I hadn't-"

"Stop right there." Kurosaki interrupted. "Before you say you dragged her into it, it's your bad? She's the one who made the choice to get involved. You didn't force her, and you didn't drag the fairies here yourself, so it's not your fault."

Fujino frowned. "I still feel bad about it."

Kurosaki paused, at that. "Well, I don't have anything for that. Just don't apologise for something that's not your fault."

"I suppose I shouldn't." Asagami said.

There was the sound of a turn of a page, and Asagami paused.

"What was that?" She asked. "Is someone reading something?"

"I am." Kurosaki replied. "I got the hat man to give me a book on ghosts and stuff."

...Hat man?

"She means Urahara." Kon added in, obviously seeing the confusion on Asagami's face. "You know, because he wears- I suppose you wouldn't know, sorry. Shutting up now."

"Honestly, if I could, I'd just go home." Kurosaki continued. "But my brother got roped into all this ghost stuff, and even with him being an idiot and running into ghost police land, there's this fairy stuff going on, and then just the regular Hollow's. I'd have to be an idiot to just assume I'm never gonna get caught up in this stuff again."

"So you're reading a book on ghosts in case they put you in danger again, then." Asagami summed up.

"Pretty much." Kurosaki replied. "I mean, apparently, innate power tends to run in the family, and Ichigo had a bunch of potential from the start, so I should be able to punch a ghost in the face if I learnt how."

There was the sound of another door opening, before Tsukabishi Tessai spoke. "Arisawa is awake. She needs to lay down for a while, but she is awake."

Fujino took a step towards the sound of his voice, before she paused.

"Do either of you two want to talk to her?" Fujino asked. "You two have known her for longer."

"You were there when she got hurt." Kon pointed out. "And I dunno about Kar- Kurosaki, but if I was by someone who got hurt, I'd want to check if they were okay as soon as I could. You go ahead."

Karin didn't say anything, and the lack of denial was enough for Asagami to assume it was okay to go ahead. She heard Tsukabishi move out of the way as she passed through the door, and Fujino closed it behind her as she entered the room.

"Arisawa." Fujino began.

"Asagami." The girl replied. "What happened? A Hollow hit me and Misaya got away, but it's kind of a blur..."

"That's the basics of it." Asagami answered. "Misaya had controlled it with a fairy, as far as I can tell. I killed it, and then I had to take you here."

"...Well, she left her stuff behind when she ran." Arisawa pointed out. "So that's something, at least. Don't know how you could use it. Maybe go back and take the stuff, maybe go back and wait for her to turn up again, or something. Assuming she doesn't make a ghost do it, I suppose."

"That is something we could use." Fujino mused. "Somehow, anyway."

There was an awkward tension in the air, Fujino thought to herself. The conversation really wasn't going anywhere. She wasn't entirely sure what the source was, but she could tell something was amiss.

"...I really screwed up, didn't I?" Arisawa asked, eventually.

Fujino blinked. "What do you mean?"

"You were there." Arisawa explained. "You found her. You were talking to her. When she ran, you could've followed her. She only got away because I was there."

Fujino took a moment to phrase her next sentence. "Arisawa, it's okay. You've helped me a lot. I never would have found her if it wasn't for you."

"Maybe." Arisawa admitted. "But how did I help you there? I pointed out a fairy that you probably would've sensed eventually. Then I agitated the person you were trying to talk to because..."

She trailed off, and sighed.

"If I wasn't there, you probably would've had much better luck." Arisawa decided. "You've got enough information at this point, don't you? Go ahead. Forget about me, find Ouji. It'll be for the best."

Fujino looked at her for a moment, before she spoke again.

 **[X] ...If Arisawa insisted, then there wasn't much Fujino could do to change her mind, was there? If she didn't think she could help, Fujino shouldn't force her.**  
 **[X] This wasn't just coming out of nowhere. Fujino needed to talk to Arisawa to figure out how to change her mind. This felt like it ran deeper than just one mistake.**


	17. Chapter 17

**[X] This wasn't just coming out of nowhere. Fujino needed to talk to Arisawa to figure out how to change her mind. This felt like it ran deeper than just one mistake.**

When Fujino next spoke, her words were slow, more deliberate. This was a matter which felt like it could be sensitive. She needed to make sure that she didn't say anything that would cause Arisawa to withdraw, and stop talking.

"Arisawa." She began. "What were you going to say there? You trailed off."

There was the sound of something ruffling as Arisawa moved suddenly, before she replied. "It's nothing. Forget about it."

"It doesn't sound like nothing." Fujino replied. "Arisawa, I haven't known you for very long, but it doesn't sound like you're doing too well, right now."

"Of course I don't." Arisawa replied. "I only just woke up from all the blood loss."

"That's not what I mean." Fujino disagreed. "Arisawa, please, just tell me what the problem is."

The girl fell into silence again.

Had she been too pushy? Fujino really didn't know Arisawa that much. Was she expecting too much, like this? It wasn't like Fujino could simply walk it back at this point, she wanted an answer and if Arisawa had been offended by how forceful Fujino was with wanting answers, then backing out wouldn't change that. Still, it weighed down on Fujino during the silence, that she may have overstepped her boundaries.

Arisawa sighed, ending the silence, and Fujino focused on her as she started talking.

"I'm feeling really stupid about this." Arisawa muttered. "It's not anything big compared to the whole Ouji thing. It feels like I'm just wasting your time."

"Don't be like that." Asagami told her. "If it's bothering you, it's important. Even if someone else is going through something worse, that doesn't mean something weighing on your mind is any less difficult for you."

Arisawa didn't reply to that, and there was a pause before she shifted the topic of conversation. "I always thought I was someone my friends could count on. Someone who'd help. Maybe I was being self-centred, but I always thought I was reliable. Then it turns out Ichigo and Orihime have gotten involved in something big and never told me, never even let me know something was happening."

The girl sighed again, and Fujino waited until she started talking again. "I didn't want to let it bother me for long, didn't want to just sulk over not being told anything. But I guess I just didn't want to be left out again, really. You noticed, right? I kept butting in on the conversation between you and Ouji talking, even though I didn't have any right to be involved. Agitated her just because I didn't want to be doing nothing."

"That's not how-" Fujino began.

"Yeah, it was." Arisawa interrupted. "I should've just shut up. You might've been able to talk with Ouji more if I didn't piss her off. Hell, who knows, maybe she wouldn't have set the Hollow on me if I didn't keep talking."

Fujino didn't reply. Arisawa would likely just interrupt her again if she spoke too suddenly, so she had to take a moment to wait for her chance to speak, and if she was waiting for her moment, she had time to think about what to say. And given the chance to think, Fujino had to admit, she didn't know if she could say for sure that Arisawa was wrong. Fujino didn't know Misaya that well, and the state Misaya was in meant that it made sense that she might act irrationally. Could Fujino really say for sure that Arisawa's interjections weren't detrimental?

Fujino couldn't honestly refute Arisawa's point there, and if she tried, she doubted she could sound convincing. So rather than logic, Fujino needed to appeal to emotion.

"It's fine." She insisted. "Misaya wasn't in the best state of mind when we met her, anyway. Even if she had stuck around and talked with me more, I could have said something that would have set her off just the same."

"You don't know that for sure." Arisawa countered.

"And I don't know otherwise for sure." Fujino insisted.

"Why are you so insistent on this?" Arisawa asked. "Why do you care?"

Fujino didn't reply for some time, as she tried to phase her reply to this.

"You felt bad about your friends not telling you about their problems." Fujino began. "So you tried to involve yourself in my problems. I hardly think you should be blamed for that."

"Why not?" Arisawa asked.

"Because my reasoning is hardly better." Fujino answered, looking down. "The supernatural element to this situation is something I don't want to be involved with. If it was up to me, I'd never have to involve myself in the supernatural ever again. I'd never let anyone know I was involved in the supernatural at all, if I had a choice in the matter."

Arisawa sounded like she was about to say something, but at the last second, cut herself off.

"I'm going to be honest." Fujino continued. This point, she was unsure about, but Misaya had already hinted at it fairly heavily with Arisawa in earshot, so it wasn't that much more being revealed. "I'm not a good person, Arisawa. I don't want to go into details on this, but after the things I've done, the fact that I am still here is an injustice."

"...Asagami?"

"At the end of the day, the reason I'm here isn't anything selfless." Fujino explained. "It's just to make me feel better. It's no less selfish than wanting to be involved because you want to be needed, Arisawa."

"...I don't know what to say." Arisawa admitted. "I don't know what's happened, but... Well, you're selling yourself short, Asagami. If your idea of feeling better about yourself is going out of your way to help someone when you'd rather stay home, then I don't know how you're so sure that you're not a good person."

"Thank you, Arisawa." Fujino replied. "But if you think someone can be a good person while pursuing a selfish goal, then you can see why I wouldn't care if you made a mistake because you were trying to pursue something important to you. I could just as easily make a mistake, all things considered."

"You haven't yet, though." Arisawa replied. "I have."

"And that doesn't mean you will again." Fujino countered.

"Might be too late." Arisawa continued. "Misaya already doesn't like me. Me turning up might agitate her more in the future."

"Perhaps." Fujino continued. "It doesn't mean you can't help without meeting her again, somehow."

Silence fell again, as Arisawa presumably took time to think of what to say, before she spoke again.

"I'm surprised you've gone so far to change my mind." Arisawa admitted.

"You've been a big help so far, Arisawa." Fujino continued. "And you said it yourself, you would rather be someone reliable. I believe it would be easier to find Misaya again if you could continue helping me, Arisawa. At the very least, having someone who can see the town and know where everything is would be helpful."

"...I still don't like this." Arisawa muttered. "But yeah. Alright. If you really want me to keep lending a hand, I will."

Fujino smiled. "Thank you, Arisawa. If you want to talk about it any more, just let me know. Maybe it will make you feel better."

"There's not any more to talk about." Arisawa replied. "I mean, we covered it all already, I think. I feel bad because people weren't filling me in on what they were doing, when they were going through hard times, and it sucks I couldn't help. Then I fucked up when I did try to help. Not really anything else to it."

"I suppose." Fujino accepted. "Still, if it bothers you, I'm here if you want to talk about anything, Arisawa."

"Hey." Arisawa interrupted. "We just had a big talk about how we feel and stuff. This isn't usually something I'd talk about with someone I'm on last name basis with. I think it's alright if you just called me Tatsuki at this point."

Fujino blinked.

"I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to." Arisawa quickly rectified. "Like, if it's something that'd make you uncomfortable, I'd get it. We've known each other for like three days, we barely know each other beyond the obvious."

"No, it's fine." Fujino assured her. "I just hadn't expected it, for some reason. It's fine. Tatsuki. You can fall me Fujino, if you want."

Tatsuki sighed again, this time sounding relieved. "That's still something, though. We really don't know each other that well, Fujino. What do you do when you're not travelling around looking for lost people? For fun, I mean."

Fujino took a moment to think on that. It'd been some time since she'd been able to do much, what with ow much she had been trying to catch up on school work while trying to learn braille, but there was a few things.

"I used to enjoy movies." Fujino mused. "I haven't gone to any recently, for obvious reasons, but I have been meaning to get around to seeing what options the cinema has for the visually impaired. Recently, I've mostly just been thinking a lot. How about you, Ar- Tatsuki?"

The girl chuckled lightly. "You know, I won't get upset or anything if you call me Arisawa. I get it, it's habit, it's hard to shift over."

"I don't want to seem rude." Fujino replied.

"Well, to answer you question..." Tatsuki took a moment to think. "Movies are good, occasionally. I spend most of my time at Karate practice, personally. Usually hang out with Orihime, or Ichigo, or whoever, but everyone's busy right now, so that's not an option. I guess thinking's pretty much all I was doing until you came along, recently."

"You haven't done anything to just relax recently?" Fujino asked. "Just to unwind?"

"Have you?" Tatsuki asked.

Fujino pondered that. "You raise a fair point. Perhaps we should try to take some time to relax. Misaya is suffering, but if we don't find her soon, I could end up burning myself out just trying to find her."

"Well, I wouldn't go that far." Arisawa interrupted. "You're hardly that bad."

"It's still a thought." Fujino pointed out. "People can't survive just focusing on heavy subjects and not having fun. And besides, I imagine giving Misaya time to calm down might make her less likely to attack us on sight."

"I suppose." Tatsuki stated. "So what? You want to grab a movie later? I mean, not in the cinema, but there's a place not far from here that dubs over American movies, I'd say there's good odds they have something narrated in detail there."

"How recent are the movies they have?" Fujino asked. "I hear that one of the big American horror movies got a sequel recently, and I'm interested in seeing how it is."

"...Horror?" Tatsuki asked. "I hadn't taken you as the kind of person who likes horror."

Fujino frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I dunno too much about you, but you always seemed..." Tatsuki began, before trailing off. "You were getting bothered earlier because hiding in a bush was undignified, but you watch horror?"

"I don't get it." Fujino replied. "How is that strange?"

"It..." Tatsuki trailed off again, and sighed. "Never mind."

"Well I'm going to mind now." Fujino replied. "Am I missing something? Is there something strange about me liking horror movies that I don't understand? Do people find that weird?"

"No, no, it's fine." Tatsuki assured her. "It's just... How did this conversation get here? How did we go from me asking what exactly happened when I got hit to us talking about movies?"

"I'm not entirely sure." Fujino replied. "Oh, and I forgot to mention. Kurosaki is in the room next to us, she wanted to check on you at some point. I should probably leave so she can talk to you at some point."

"Karin?" Tatsuki asked. Fujino nodded, and Tatsuki continued. "Yeah, I should probably talk to her. The big guy told me I needed to rest for a while, but when he lets me go, we'll go see if we can find a movie or something?"

"That would be nice." Fujino replied. "I'll be seeing you, then."

"What're you gonna do while I'm stuck here?" Tatsuki asked. "Just curious. Go back to the abandoned place and grab Ouji's stuff?"

Fujino took a moment to think about it. "Maybe. She might not think about going back for it for a while. It's not a priority, regardless. It's hardly needed, even if it would be convenient. But I don't have anything else to do."

"I suppose we could just leave it and go by later." Tatsuki mused. "Wait for her to realise she needs to go back for it and be there when she gets there? It's not really a plan but we could work on it, I guess."

Fujino thought on it for a moment.

 **[X] Go get Ouji's stuff now, and see if any of it can be useful for her to find Misaya. At the very least, the map could be useful.**  
 **[X] Leave it. It's not explicitly something needed right now, and maybe it would do Fujino some good to just wait here.**


	18. Chapter 18

**[X] Leave it. It's not explicitly something needed right now, and maybe it would do Fujino some good to just wait here.**

Stepping out of the small room, Fujino turned her head to the direction she remembered Kurosaki sitting in.

"You wanted to see Tatsuki next, Kurosaki?" Fujino asked.

"Yeah, hold on." Kurosaki replied. The sound of her feet hitting the ground echoed slightly, and she started walking in Fujino's direction. Asagami moved away from the door, briefly looking back to wave to Tatsuki again, and let Kurosaki pass. The door shut, and Fujino started walking to where Kurosaki had been sitting.

"It's a bit of distance to go, you're fine." Kon informed her. Fujino took a few steps forward, and then paused to feel around again. The two of them repeated their actions another three times, before Fujino found the seat.

Sitting down, Fujino took a slow breath, trying to relax.

"...So..." Kon muttered, awkwardly. "First name basis, huh?"

Fujino took a moment to realise what Kon was talking about. She had just referred to Tatsuki by her first name in front of everyone, hadn't she?

"Tatsuki thought it was appropriate." Fujino replied. "Even if we don't know each other well, we talked about a lot. At this point, it'd be strange not to, wouldn't it?"

"I suppose." Kon admitted. "I should probably get out of the habit of using first names myself. I got used to calling her Tatsuki because Ichigo did it and I needed to fit in but if Karin doesn't want me referring to her with her first name, I imagine that Arisawa wouldn't want me doing it either."

Fujino hummed, not really sure how to respond.

Well, the small talk was nice, she supposed. It was a little awkward, given how she and Kon were strangers who knew some of each others secrets, but some conversation to pass the time wasn't something Fujino was going to turn down.

Now if only she knew how to continue the conversation. Kon appeared to be having similar issues, given how he wasn't talking either.

"...So, how do you think of Karakura?" Kon asked. "I mean, you probably haven't seen much beyo- Well, you probably haven't _seen_ an- I instantly regret this, I should start again."

"I understand what you mean." Fujino replied. A topic of conversation was in there and it was best to move onto that. "Karakura is okay, from what I've experienced. It hasn't been much, admittedly, but beyond the Hollows, it seems like a nice place. I'll admit that the Hollows would be a dealbreaker usually, but I imagine it must not usually be too big an issue if people are capable of living here."

"Yeah..." Kon replied. "I mean, Karakura's a big place, and from what I understand, Hollow's attacking random people isn't a common thing. Usually, ghosts have to linger for a while before going Hollow, and a lot of the time they get eaten by another Hollow first. Or they go after someone who has a lot of spirit power and they know how to deal with the problem."

"I see..." Fujino mused. "Still, Tatsuki was attacked on my first day here, and she didn't know anything about Hollows before. So they do target normal people, sometimes."

"Oh, yes, that happens." Kon acknowledged. "As I understand it, places like Karakura usually have a Shinigami on sight to rush in to kill Hollows, save people, cover up evidence so normal people don't realise, so on. I... Don't really know what's going on with all that with all the recent stuff going on, so I dunno if there was a Shinigami in the area. Wouldn't surprise me if there wasn't, but also wouldn't surprise me if they noticed you and decided it wasn't their business."

"So most normal people are reliant on some supernatural who aren't reliably around?" Fujino asked.

"...I admit, this _sounds_ bad." Kon admitted. "But like, Ichigo had a bunch of spiritual power and didn't run into any Hollows for most of his life. Shinigami usually have it handled. Still a bit of a higher death rate than most places, yeah, that's not great. Like, car crashes cause as many deaths in other places."

"It's not nice to think about." Fujino mused.

"I suppose not." Kon admitted.

The two of them lapsed into silence again, and Fujino took a moment to silently regret the fact that, even when trying to not think about the various issues she'd faced since coming to Karakura town, she'd still ended up talking about Hollows.

Thankfully, before either of them were required to think of something new to say, a door opened.

"I'm done." Kurosaki said, as she shut the door behind her. She took a few steps towards Fujino before stopping.

Belatedly, Fujino realised she had taken Kurosaki's chair.

"I can move if you-"

"It's fine." Karin interrupted. "There's other chairs. Just lemme grab that."

She took some more steps forward, before picking something up.

"May as well keep reading." She said, before moving a few steps away and sitting down.

There were three people in the room now, and somehow, there was still no conversation. At least Kurosaki seemed satisfied with the arrangement, she had a book to read.

"I don't suppose anyone has seen anything in braille around here?" Fujino asked.

"Nope." Kurosaki replied.

"Sorry." Kon added.

Well, so much for that idea.

There was nothing else for it, then. Resting back in her seat, Fujino simply focused on her breathing for a while. Conversation wasn't going to happen and she had nothing better to do, so that just left resting.

* * *

Time passed. Kurosaki read her book. Kon didn't really do anything. Neither did Fujino. Tsukabishi popped in to check on Tatsuki a few times. Fujino wasn't keeping track, but she thinks it was the fourth check, where he finally declared that Tatsuki was fit to move about as she pleased.

Grabbing the cane that she had left resting against the wall, Fujino stood up.

What time was it, now? It must have been sometime in the afternoon now. It occurred to Fujino that she hadn't eaten lunch yet, and Tatsuki wouldn't have had the time to eat either.

"Hey, everyone." Tatsuki said, as she stepped into the room.

"Hello, Tatsuki." Fujino repeated.

"Hey, T-Arisawa." Kon mentioned. "Glad to see you're okay."

"Ich-" Tatsuki began, before cutting herself off. "Kon, I mean. Kon. Why are you here?"

"Just wanted to confirm you were okay." Kon replied. "Also because I don't know if Ka- Kurosaki's done interrogating me so I have to stay where she is."

"It's good to see you okay, Tatsuki." Karin noted. "I know I said that earlier, but it's worth repeating."

"Thanks." Tatsuki replied.

"Well, now that I know for sure, is there any reason anyone wants me to stick around?" Kurosaki asked. "Otherwise, I'm going to head home. Today's been a few revelations and I want to just go lie down and think for a while."

"Am I off the hook, then?" Kon asked.

"For now, I guess." Karin grumbled. "You still need to give me more details on the thing you mentioned earlier with the Grand Fisher thing."

"That's really Ichigo's story to tell, I think." Kon replied.

"And he's not exactly here now, is he?" Karin pointed out, as she stood up. "Anyway, see you later."

"Bye." Tatsuki said. Fujino waved her farewell, and the girl moved to leave. A moment later, Kon stood up as well.

"I should go too." He said. "I, uh, don't really have anything to do, but I imagine you don't want me around much more, Arisawa."

"Not particularly, no."

"That's fair." Kon accepted. "I'll just, uh, leave."

His footsteps rushed away and faded into the distance before too long.

"I imagine the two of you will want to leave as well?" Tsukabishi asked. "Or do you have any other business here?"

"I don't think so." Tatsuki replied, before pausing. "Or, wait. Do you know why I can suddenly see ghosts really well? Like before they were a vague outline, but earlier today, I saw one that was completely solid. Or, well, solid looking."

Tsukabishi hummed, thinking it over.

"Being able to see ghosts is a mark of spiritual power." He explained. "And the method Urahara had prescribed to prevent the familiars from consuming your memories was, essentially, flushing your body with trace amounts of spiritual energy to replicate the protective effect that people can channel naturally. Perhaps, between that energy, previous experiences with the supernatural that you forgot, and simply being around the likes of Asagami, your soul has adapted to develop that level of supernatural power naturally."

"Huh." Tatsuki replied. "I have no idea what that means, but basically taking magic pills and sticking with Fujino gave me the power to see ghosts, I guess?"

"I'd imagine that would be the cause." Tsukabishi replied.

"So are there any side effects of that?" Tatsuki asked. "If I keep eating the anti-fairy pills, will I end up making my soul explode or something?"

"No, no." Tsukabishi assured her. "They shouldn't have any effect at all. The only other effect I could imagine is that your body would adapt to having spiritual energy and allow you to actually fight Hollows to defend yourself against them."

"Well, that's neat." Tatsuki replied. "At least I'll be able to punch a ghost in the face if they try to eat me in the future. Anyway, let's go, Fujino."

The purple haired girl paused. "That seemed like a bit of an underreaction." She noted.

"I'll think about it later." Tatsuki replied. "It's like we said earlier, we should really relax, talking about punching Hollows isn't going to help with that. I can think about it after the movie."

"I see." Fujino noted. "Farewell, Tsukabishi."

"Goodbye." The man replied.

Tatsuki said her goodbyes as well, and the two girls made their way out of the store. Fujino didn't notice Urahara on the way out, or the two small children, but they presumably had things to do.

"So, movies." Tatsuki said. "You said there was an American horror movie you wanted to see the sequel to?"

"If it's there." Fujino mused. "Do you have any preferences?"

"Not really." Tatsuki replied, with a shrug. "It's just that I don't usually watch horror, so like, am I going to need to know anything from the movie before to get any idea what's going on?"

"I don't think so." Fujino replied. "Perhaps it's just the ones I'm familiar with, but don't horror movies rarely have recurring casts? Beyond the antagonists, they usually either leave the last movie's survivors away from the plot or kill them off early."

"Yeah but, is this one of those horror movies where there's some elaborate rules to the scary thing, or..."

"There's a man with a knife who won't die." Fujino summarised.

"Got it." Tatsuki replied. "Nothing complicated."

As the two went outside, Tatsuki's footsteps slowed, and she sighed.

"What is it?" Fujino asked, turning back to her.

"It's getting cloudy." Tatsuki noted. "Might rain later, or tomorrow."

"Should we go find a few umbrellas before we continue, then?" Fujino asked. The rain was hardly unpleasant, but if she got soaked before she got to the hotel, it would take time to dry herself off before going to sleep.

"Shouldn't be an issue, probably won't rain until after the sun sets, I'd guess." Tatsuki replied. "And if not, there's a bus route near the cinema, so we can get around without getting caught in the rain."

"That's alright, then." Fujino noted. Tatsuki started walking again, and as she overtook Fujino, the girl with purple hair followed her.

* * *

Time passed. The two girls spent some time together, and enjoyed the movie. The sequel wasn't as good as the original, which was a rather disappointing constant, but it was a good movie. Afterwards, the two girls got some lunch, and spent some time simply talking.

"You said you practice Karate, Tatsuki?" Fujino asked, as the two of them simply wandered around. "What's it like?"

"Not really much to say about it." Tatsuki replied. "Most of the time it's just going through the motions. Doing tournaments is pretty fun, though. It's pretty cool to test myself against some other people who know what they're doing. And I mean, it's a good feeling when you win."

"I suppose." Fujino mused. She wasn't much of a competitive person herself, so it wasn't something she related to that much. The closest comparison she had was that rush she got when killing someone, and that was hardly the same thing. Fujino felt like she would have heard if martial arts tournaments involved fights to the death.

"So, what about you?" Tatsuki asked. "You said you went to Reien, right? That's one of those really fancy academies, isn't it? The uniform you and Ouji have certainly looks like it."

"I don't really have anything to compare it to." Fujino replied. "But calling it fancy would be one way of putting it, I think."

"So, that whole thing where you had issues with the idea of hiding in a bush because it was undignified, was that something you picked up Reien, or were you just always like that?"

"What do you mean by that?" Fujino asked.

"Well, it's like..." Tatsuki trailed off, trying to think of how to put it into words. "If you're hiding in a bush to listen in on someone, being undignified or getting dirty, those aren't exactly things that most poeple think about. Usually they just need to listen in on something and don't care beyond that."

"But what would people think if they found out?" Fujino asked. "People would think less of you if they found out you were listening in on other people's conversations, wouldn't they?"

"Well, the idea is that people wouldn't find out." Tatsuki pointed out.

"Why take that risk, though?" Fujino asked. "Besides, if someone say dirt on your clothes, they'd think you were doing something suspicious."

"Or just tripped over or something." Tatsuki replied. "And most people wouldn't look close enough to notice, or care."

"People at Reien would." Fujino retorted.

"Ah, I see." Tatsuki concluded. "It's the difference between someone who goes to a normal high school and someone like you who goes to a fancy one."

"I suppose so." Fujino sighed.

Tatsuki didn't reply for a moment, and when she did speak, she changed the topic again.

"It's getting kinda late." Tatsuki noted. "Didn't realise how late it was when we ate. Should probably head home before it starts raining."

"Alright, then." Fujino replied. "I'll see you tomorrow, then."

"Back to business soon." Tatsuki replied. "What's the plan for later, then? Get Ouji's stuff? Look for her somewhere?"

Fujino thought on it for a moment.

 **[X] "We can meet by the abandoned hospital again tomorrow, and see if Ouji's belongings are still there."**  
 **[X] "The graveyard sounds like it would be involved with the dead, so she might be there."**  
 **[X] "I might be able to find the Ley Lines Misaya knew about. They were in town, so we could meet around here tomorrow and start from here?"**


	19. Chapter 19

**[X] "I might be able to find the Ley Lines Misaya knew about. They were in town, so we could meet around here tomorrow and start from here?"**

When the next day came about, Fujino was awake early. She and Tatsuki had agreed on a meeting place, a bus stop near the cinema, since it allowed Fujino to get their easily. There was a route almost directly from her hotel to that stop, after all, and Tatsuki knew her way around Karakura well enough to know exactly how to get their.

The night before, Fujino had made sure she was prepared. She had found a map and observed it through her clairvoyance, to try and recall where the Ley Lines she had seen on Misaya's map would be. She had made sure she had an umbrella at the ready. She had asked around to determine the bus schedule to figure out when she had to leave to arrive at the agreed location.

She had actually forgetten to return to Urahara's shop and find the clothes that she had been covered in blood so she could clean them and take them home, but nobody had commented on it, so Fujino didn't realise until she had seen herself through her clairvoyance later that day. She hoped that everyone just assumed she had gone clothes shopping, or had borrowed her clothes from elsewhere. Or else had not noticed. It would be embarrassing if they assumed she was in different clothing because she had done something scandalous.

That said, it had gone smoothly the day after. The bus driver had informed her of when her stop had come, and now Fujino merely needded to wait for Tatsuki to arrive.

The only issue she had encountered was that, in order to make it to the agreed place at the agreed time, with the bus schedule being what it was, Fujino had to arrive fairly early. She would have to wait for some time, before Tatsuki arrived.

It was strange, Fujino found herself thinking. She had come to Karakura Town just to find one person. She hadn't expected to do much else. And yet somehow, she had made a friend. Fujino had never been good at making friends in the best of situations, and yet somehow, at a time like this, she had ended up making one.

Thinking on that, though, perhaps it would be more accurate to think of it as Fujino being able to make friends easier at times like this. The only actual friend she had made normally was Azaka, and truthfully, that was a result of Azaka deciding that she wanted to be friends with her. Other people she would call friends would range between people Azaka was friends with, or Risu, who Fujino had started to spend time with after talking the girl out of killing herself.

So perhaps it wasn't so strange that Fujino had made another friend. She seemed to only befriend people during tense situations, after all. Perhaps it was that the exact nature of the situation, with the risk of harm dealing with Hollows and whatnot brought, that made it easier for Fujino to open up?

Deep in thought as she was, Fujino almost missed it when the faint sound of rain began hitting the pavement around her.

Looking up, Fujino felt her face growing wet. Touching a hand to her cheek, and she could feel the light raindrops touch at the back of her hand.

It wasn't heavy rain, not by a long shot. In fact, the summer rain was rather pleasantly light. Her umbrella hanging loosely at her side, Asagami Fujino looked up, and reminisced on the rain.

The last time she had been caught in the rain had been that time, hadn't it? It wasn't exactly a pleasant memory, that one. Pushing against the storm's wind, the rain so heavy it was hard to see, the sound of the water hitting the ground so loud it was hard to hear. That was what it was like, when the shape of that woman had become clear. The woman Asagami Fujino had tried so hard to kill, and who tried so hard to kill Fujino in turn.

Before that, too. Mere days before, she had been caught in the rain. It was after the first time she had committed murder, the first time in years she had felt pain. That memory was more pleasant. There was fear, but there was also relief. The rain had washed away the blood, and that man had offered her shelter. The rain was lighter then, less overbearing.

Before that, once again. When she was a child. Back before she was a murderer, before she had done anything wrong, and yet was still unsure of her right to exist. It was such a minor thing, she barely even thought about it these days. She stared into the sky, at the grey clouds with tint of golden light, thinking her inability to feel was proof that the world had rejected her, when the first drop of rain landed on her cheek.

Realistically speaking, it was likely a coincidence. And yet, as a child, it had felt like a sign. Before anything else, she had been touched. It had felt like she was being told that it was okay, if she couldn't feel anything. She was here, and that was fine.

It was just superstition, but it had been comforting as a child.

It had been raining once, and Asagami Fujino felt it was okay for her to exist. It had been raining once, and Asagami Fujino had regained her sense of pain. It had been raining once, and Asagami Fujino realised she had sinned, and begun working to atone.

The most pleasant of those memories had been in the lightest of rain, but still, it made Fujino smile to be caught in the rain.

That was strange, wasn't it? Something people would think was odd, if they knew. Not to the same extent as an insensitivity to pain, or a psychic power, or a desire to kill, but the point remained. If someone saw Fujino as she was now, would they think less of her?

Perhaps she should stop reminiscing and put up her umbrella, before someone came across her.

"Fujino?"

And just as that thought crossed her mind, it was too late. Tatsuki was here.

Had it been that long already? Fujino must have lost track of time at some point. Her clothes didn't feel too heavy, so she hadn't gotten soaked in the rain while lost in thought, at least.

"What's wrong?" Tatsuki asked. "Umbrella busted?"

Oh, she had seen Fujino just standing around, then.

"No." Asagami informed her. "I was just lost in thought."

Picking up the umbrella, Fujino let her cane down for a moment so she could feel around for the latch to pull at, to open it up. It took her a moment to find it, and once she had, she held it above her head with one hand as she reached for her cane with the other.

"Well, let's go then." Tatsuki muttered curtly. Then, she stopped, and hesitated for a moment before she spoke again. "Sorry. That was ruder than I had intended. I just tend to get in a bad mood when it's raining?"

Oh?

"That's okay, Tatsuki." Fujino replied, with a smile. Still, that was curious. There was some level of irony, Fujino thought, that right after she spent time thinking of how much she enjoyed remembering her past in the rain, Tatsuki would make a comment to the opposite effect.

"How's your morning been?" Tatsuki asked, likely as an attempt to make up for her momentary rudeness. "Eat anything nice for breakfast?"

"The hotel was offering some room service, so I asked for pancakes." Fujino replied. "I thought it sounded interesting to try."

"Nice." Tatsuki replied. "I should get myself some of those sometime. I just had toast this morning."

Fujino didn't respond for a moment, unable to think of a way to continue that conversation. Instead, she refocused, and tried to recall where the map had marked the Ley Lines.

"One of the Ley Lines Misaya would be looking for should be nearby." Fujino said to Tatsuki. "And I imagine she wouldn't want to be noticed while working with it, so if she was hiding somewhere, it would be near one of the Ley Lines. Do you know if there's anywhere in town where she could be hidden?"

There was a brief lull, in which the rain was the only thing that could be heard, before Tatsuki responded.

"I think there was a section of the shopping district that was going through renovations." Tatsuki replied. "It's been like it for a while, though. Some kind of budgeting issue, I think. So there's a few buildings around town that have just been emptied."

"How many of those are nearby?" Fujino asked.

"A few." Tatsuki replied. "They're a fair distance apart, though, and they're all over the place."

"How about in that direction?" Fujino asked, pointing her cane across the street. "I might be wrong, but I think the closest Ley Line is over there."

"I think there's one of the places over." Tatsuki noted.

"We should make our way over there, then." Fujino replied. "Is there a crossing nearby?"

"Not really, but there's one down the street a bit." Tatsuki replied. "Here, this way."

She started walking, her footsteps difficult to make out over the rain, and Fujino followed.

For a time, it was quiet. The pleasant sound of the rain continued to fall around Fujino, and the two girls only talked briefly, when Fujino needed advice on where to go. Eventually, the two girls made their way to the first empty building Tatsuki could think of.

"Is there a way to look inside?" Fujino asked. "I could use my power to scan the area if I have to, but I would prefer not to. If there are any Hollows around, it would attract them."

Tatsuki hummed in consideration, and it was some time before she replied. "Doesn't look like it, sorry. I don't see any Hollows around either, though. I'll let you know if I see one coming?"

"Thank you." Fujino replied, before closing her eyes, and focusing.

The world became clear, and the first thing Asagami noticed was how cold the rain on her clothes was. She had never really focused on how the rain feels, when she could feel, Asagami mused. Twice, she had had the chance, but both times she had been distracted by other problems, other sensations, both times.

Now it was the rain that was distracting her from what was important, though. Pushing that thought out of her mind, Fujino observed the building with her clairvoyance.

There was nobody in it, from the looks of things.

"It's empty." Fujino reported to Tatsuki. Then, a thought occurred to her. "Where is the next location? I might be able to check it from here."

"You might?" Tatsuki asked. "How big is the range on your clairvoyance?"

"I'm not entirely sure." Fujino admitted.

"Well..." Tatsuki replied, and Fujino observed her looking around for a moment. "To your left, I think? Two or three blocks down."

Fujino shifted her gaze again, towards that direction.

"Are you sure?" Fujino asked, after a moment. "I don't think any of the buildings over there are closed for renovation."

"Oh right, that place actually finished up recently." Tatsuki realised. "Try..."

She went quiet for a moment. "There's one a few blocks from here. Down the end of this street, turn left, then the third right after that..."

"Hold on." Fujino interrupted her, before refocusing her vision on herself, and guiding her sight down the path Tatsuki had described. "Okay. The third right, and then?"

"Then it should be the fifth building on the left, by the alleyway." Tatsuki finished.

Fujino's all-seeing eyes focused on the building Tatsuki had described, closed and with most of the windows sealed. Strangely, one had been busted open, with a few fragments of shattered glass remaining on the windowsill.

Immediately, the cause of the broken window made itself clear.

Inside the building, under the shade of an unmoving Hollow, laid Ouji Misaya. The movement of her cheat shifted with her breath, but otherwise, she was motionless on the ground.

"There she is." Fujino noted. "I'm not sure if she's conscious. She's not moving."

"So, what's the plan then?" Tatsuki asked.

"I don't know." Fujino admitted. "There's a Hollow over her. It looks like the one that hurt you earlier, so I think it's under her control. At the very least, I think it would have attacked her if it wasn't."

"Can you kill it?" Tatsuki asked.

"Probably." Fujino answered. "But I don't know if that would be the best idea. I don't want to do anything that could set her off, and I don't know how she controls the Hollow. Perhaps killing it would have some kind of backlash on her, or alarm her enough to wake her up panicked."

"What do you suggest we do, then?" Tatsuki asked.

"Perhaps we can think of a plan on the way there." Fujino replied.

"Suppose so." Tatsuki replied, as she began to walk again. Deactivating her psychic power and plunging herself back into a numb darkness, Fujino followed the sound of Tatsuki's footsteps.

"We can't just try to pick Ouji up while she's out, can we?" Tatsuki asked. "It'd probably be bad if she woke up and started freaking out while we were carrying her. Plus, if people saw it, they'd misinterpret it for sure."

"In that case, we'd need to wake her up, somehow." Fujino mused. "I don't think banging at the door would do any good."

"So maybe we get in and figure something out from there?"

"Perhaps." Asgami continued. "The Hollow is an issue, but it could be that it won't do anything without orders from Misaya."

"Ouji had to get in somehow." Tatsuki mused in turn. "Maybe we could get in the same way?"

"There was a broken window." Fujino noted. A wind blew through suddenly, repositioning the Umbrella that Fujino held loosely, and she took a moment to tighten her grip and point it towards the rain again. "I don't think I would be able to climb through it."

"I could, though." Tatsuki replied. "And then I could get the door open from inside, probably. Unless they've replaced the lock. And worse come to worse, it's easier to hide that a door's been busted if I force it open from the inside rather than the outside."

"Please don't talk as if we're conducting some kind of criminal activity." Fujino asked.

"...I mean, technically, we'll be trespassing. Breaking and entering somewhere we shouldn't go. It kinda is criminal, when you think about it."

Fujino didn't respond to that.

Eventually, the two girls got to the building in question.

"The broken window is in the alleyway." Fujino confirmed. "I'll monitor the Hollow. If it looks like you're in danger, I'll kill it before it hurts you."

"Thanks." Tatsuki replied. "I am _not_ looking forward to one of those things hitting me again."

Fujino nodded, and closed her eyes. Again, the sensation of her slightly dampened clothes took her off guard, but she put it out of her mind easier this time, and looked into the building.

Misaya was exactly as she had been the last Fujino had checked, though now that she looked more closely, Fujino began to notice how poor her condition was. If she was sleeping, her dreams were restless, as her face was contorted, fearful-looking. There were marks along her cheeks, as if she had been crying. One of her hands was loosely holding her stomach, and the other, curled into a fist, was marked with blood.

"I'm going in." Tatsuki said, beside Fujino. Asagami nodded, and Arisawa made her way around the building. It didn't take her long to reach the window. She climbed through, somehow avoiding the shards of glass still in the window, and hit the ground inside the building.

The moment Tatsuki stood up, the Hollow moved.

The instant the Hollow moved, Fujino acted.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The instant Fujino spoke, the Hollow died. It's head twisted apart, and the slowly fading corpse fell forward with the momentum it had moved with.

Right towards Tatsuki.

Fujino opened her mouth to speak again, put enough force on the body to slow it's descent and give Tatsuki time to escape the falling Hollow, but the other girl acting first. Her muscles tensed as she moved forward, and grabbed the arm of the Hollow. With the Hollow's fist in her hands, Tatsuki pushed her arms to the side, shifting the momentum of the falling Hollow in the process, and stepped to the other side as she did so.

The Hollow collided with the wall, and burst apart as it did so, it's body turning to nothingness as it did so. Tatsuki looked at her hands, surprised etched in her face, and Fujino saw a fairy briefly in the Hollow's disappearing corpse, before it fell apart as well.

On the other side of the room, Misaya suddenly shot up, gasping for breath as she awoke.

Well, this was troublesome.

Inside the building, Tatsuki turned to Misaya, and put her hands up. Her lips were moving, but Fujino couldn't hear what was being discussed inside. All she could see was Misaya holding forth her fist, as if brandishing a weapon. Which, considering she had some kind of magic, would make sense even if her hand held no weapon.

Misaya muttered something, leaning against the wall as she did so, and Tatsuki backed away, towards the door.

Fujino bit her lip as she watched the two, wondering if she would need to intervene. If Misaya started trying to attack Tatsuki, would Fujino have to interfere? How would she be able to, without hurting Misaya too badly? Perhaps she could stop at just breaking a finger, but that felt like it would antagonise her, and make it harder to convince her to come home.

Tatsuki reached the door, still looking at Misaya, and stretched her hand back to search for the lock. It took her a moment to do it, but eventually, Fujino heard a click.

Stepping forward, Fujino opened her eyes, and turned off her clairvoyance. Her umbrella slipped from her hand, letting her use it to open the door.

It took a moment, for Misaya to speak.

"Asagami?" She asked, her voice sounding week. "I... Go away."

"Ouji." Fujino replied, stepping forward.

"There." Tatsuki continued. "Fujino's here, I'm not going to stay, I'm not going to get involved in your problems, Ouji. I was just lending a hand."

Oh, was that what they had talked about, before Fujino had entered the building?

"I'll be on my way out now-"

"Don't." Misaya interrupted. "Not yet. We have so much to discuss, after all."

The tone of her voice was chilling, and Fujino stepped forward. "Ouji, you-"

"You were warned, Asagami." Ouji cut in. "It's too late to care about your secret now. You kept looking for me, and you brought a friend, so now it's time to talk. Murderer."

Fujino's body tensed at the word, and around her, the world seemed to fall silent around her. Even if she had known it was coming, the directness of the declaration threw her off guard, leaving her without words. Instantly, Fujino began to regret her reaction. She should have prepared herself for it, she should have just shrugged it off, if she had done it properly she could have convinced Tatsuki that Ouji was lying, that she was just trying to confuse her. That wouldn't work now, Tatsuki had heard it, she knew.

"Not seeing what this has to do with me." Tatsuki replied, her tone flippant.

Fujino blinked.

"You don't see how this could matter?" Ouji asked. "How it's important that your new friend is a murderous beast?"

Fujino flinched slightly at the insult, but before she could talk, Tatsuki continued.

"I mean, from where I'm standing, I don't really have any reason to believe any of this." She noted. "And-"

"Four dead in one night." Ouji interrupted, her voice rambling. "Limbs torn apart, rotated until the flesh tore. Heads torn off as well. Deaths likely instant. The next night, another dead. Limbs torn off one at a time. A few days later, another victim. A driver's head was torn off. The death was ruled an accident due to collision. The next day, a bridge is destroyed. Asagami Fujino is found at the site and hospitalised. The murders stop."

Ouji stopped talking, and again, there was silence.

"...And?" Tatsuki asked.

Fujino frowned. How was Tatsuki being so blase about this? Did she not believe Ouji, even with how quiet Fujino had been, or did she just not care? Fujino didn't understand. After hearing something like that, at the very least, a normal person should be shocked, shouldn't they? At the very least, wouldn't Tatsuki be asking to hear Fujino's side of the story, before dismissing Ouji's?

It just didn't make sense.

"What do you mean, and?" Ouji suddenly snapped, shouting. "Don't you care? She's a murderer! How are you just shrugging that off?"

"Nothing to do with me." Tatsuki replied. "Nothing to do with why Fujino's here. Not important."

Misaya sputtered, wordlessly, and Fujino took the opportunity to step forward.

"Ouji." Fujino began. "You can't keep going like this. You're hurting yourself like this."

"I don't care." Ouji replied.

"I do." Fujino took another step closer. "Ouji, please. I understand what you're going through. You're hurt, and you want to make up for what happened so you don't feel as hurt. I understand that. But your'e not going to make up for anything if you keep doing this. All that's going to happen is you dying, alone, because you wouldn't look out for yourself."

"No, no, I have a plan!" Ouji replied, her voice suddenly growing frantic. "The dead, the ones in the graveyard, they know things. They hide, they watch, they remember. There's, the the monsters out there, they can do things. The dead have seen it, the dead can remember it. I just need to make a strong one, or find one to control, and I can..."

She trailed off, panting as she did so, and Fujino stepped closer.

"Listen to yourself." Fujino began. "Aren't you more composed than this? Shouldn't you be able to talk longer than this without getting exhausted? This isn't healthy, Ouji. I'll admit, I don't know much about what you're doing, but I do know that you aren't going to be able to do anything, soon."

"No." Ouji muttered, her voice so much softer since her last time speaking that it took Fujino a moment to realise it was the same person talking to her. "I... Not much longer now. One more, I have one more fairy, it's in the graveyard now. It's gathering strength, it's luring in more monsters to take their strength, it'll work. I can use it to find her spirit. I can... I can bring her back..."

Again, Fujino stepped closer.

She didn't know if she could counter Ouji's argument, not while she was like this. Misaya wasn't in the right mind, so even if Fujino could think of what to tell her to convince her to stop, she doubted it would matter. For now, she needed to focus on convincing Misaya to accept help. If she was able to rest, and recover, then perhaps she could be swayed more easily with logic, with what Fujino had learned from Urahara.

"Misaya." Fujino continued, stepping closer. "Please. Come with me. You need help. Let me help you. Get some rest, some food, look after yourself. I want you to come back to Reien, but this is more important, right now."

Ouji didn't respond, and for a moment, Fujino entertained the idea that she had succeeded. Would Misaya listen to her? If she did, what could Fujino do with Misaya? It'd be easiest if she could convince Misaya to come back to Reien immediately, but if Misaya wouldn't accept the offer if it involved Reien, then Fujino could figure something out. Perhaps she could take Misaya back to the hotel, or perhaps she could rely on Urahara again. She would prefer not to if she had the choice, since she barely knew the shop keeper, but he did seem to be willing to be of help from what Fujino had experienced.

Misaya's footsteps towards Fujino were slow, almost hesitant, and Asagami held her hand out towards the girl.

Suddenly, Misaya lunged forward. The sudden force to her stomach threw Fujino to the ground, and the sudden impact on the ground threw her cane from her hand, as Misaya's footsteps began to echo towards the door and Tatsuki shouted in alarm.

Something didn't feel right, Fujino thought, but she pushed that thought out of her mind. Pushing herself up to her feet, Asagami turned towards the entrance, where Misaya and Tatsuki were.

"Wait, don't-" Tatsuki called suddenly, before a loud impact rang out. Misaya gasped as all the breath ran out of her stomach, and then there was silence.

Stumbling across the ground as she searched for her cane, Fujino looked towards where the action had been. "Tatsuki, what happened?"

"...She was rushing me." Tatsuki admitted. "I wasn't trying to hurt her, but I was close to a wall and ended up knocking her into it. Ouji's out cold."

Fujino sighed, as she looked down. "I was hoping to do this without hurting her."

"My bad." Tatsuki replied. "Do you need a..."

She trailed off, and Fujino frowned.

"What is it?" Asagami asked.

"Why is there blood on your clothes?" Tatsuki asked.

Fujino frowned. What did Tatsuki mean by that?

Her hand reached to her stomach, where the force of Misaya's sudden charge had struck her, and it came away wet with blood.

Oh. Misaya had some kind of weapon, then.

Taking a breath, Fujino activated her ESP, and let the pain flow through her.

It hurt. It really, really hurt. It was an unfamiliar sensation that wasn't enjoyable, even if it was novel. For a moment, it was all Fujino could do, to not scream from the pain.

Strange, she thought, as the initial shock faded. This feels was very different to what she had felt when she thought she had been stabbed, back after her initial murders. How could anyone ever confuse the pain she had felt then, and the pain she felt now that she had actually been stabbed?

With that odd thought done passing her mind, Fujino looked down towards the source of the blood. There was a rip in her clothes, and beneath it, a large shard of glass was stuck into her flesh.

Reaching for the shard, Fujino put her fingers on the flat sides of the glass, and pulled.

"Wait, wai-" Tatsuki began, but a moment too late. With a short gasp of pain, Fujino pulled the glass out of her stomach.

Her gaze shifted towards Tatsuki's face, which had paled.

"Fujino." The dark-haired girl noted. "I, uh... I'm pretty sure you're meant to leave that in."

Fujino blinked. "What do you mean?"

"It's going to bleed more now." Tatsuki pointed out. "Or, at least, that's what I think the logic is."

Ah. Oops.

"Hold on, just..." Tatsuki looked around, and stepped closer to Fujino. "Try to cover the wound with your clothes and put pressure on it? Maybe lean against the wall so it's easier to deal with."

Fujino nodded, as she moved back, eventually reaching a wall and doing as Tatsuki suggested.

"What should we do now?" Fujino asked. "I should have this wound looked at, and we need to do something about Misaya. I don't think I should walk with an untreated wound, and I don't think you could carry Misaya."

Looking at the girl unconscious by the door, Tatsuki took a moment to think, before reaching for Misaya.

"She'll probably be groggy when she comes to." Tatsuki noted, as she pulled Misaya towards Fujino. "No condition to get up or do anything. So if she does wake up soon, she's not going anywhere."

"What are you thinking?" Fujino asked.

"A lot of things." Tatsuki replied. "Most I can deal with later. Right now, I'm trying to..."

She trailed off, at that.

"I suppose to Urahara's place, again." Tatsuki sighed. "I can't think of any other place to patch you up and take Misaya, at least. Unless you have any ideas?"

"Not really." Fujino admitted.

"Then Urahara it is." Tatsuki decided. "He should have some way of getting you and Ouji to his shop. A car, maybe. Worse case scenario, Tsukabishi could come here and help with the wound."

"Thank you, Tatsuki." Fujino forced herself to smile.

"Hopefully, Ouji doesn't wake up before then." Tatsuki muttered. "Uh, sorry, again. About knocking her out. She should be okay, I think, but I really didn't mean to be that harsh on her."

"It's okay, Tatsuki." Fujino replied. "You did the best."

The pain in her stomach was gnawing at the back of her mind, and so Fujino continued. "If you are going to get help, could you please hurry? This isn't a pleasant feeling."

Tatsuki's eyes widened. "Shit, yeah, shouldn't talk while you're still bleeding. Uh, remember to keep pressure on the wound, and if it starts bleeding worse, just forget about staying here and go try to find help, okay?"

"I will be fine, Tatsuki." Fujino noted. "But please. Hurry."

Tatsuki nodded, and without a word more, fled out the door.

Turning off her ESP, Fujino felt the numbness flow over her once again, and closed her eyes.

With nothing to keep her occupied but the sound of the rain, Fujino leaned against the wall, and waited for time to pass.

 **Eventually, Fujino heard another sound.**

 **[X] The breathing beside her shifting irregularly, as Ouji regained consciousness.**  
 **[X] The door creaking open, as Tatsuki returned with help.**


	20. Chapter 20

**[X] The door creaking open, as Tatsuki returned with help.**

As Fujino heard the door opening, she tilted her head upwards. It meant nothing to her, but it would show whoever was entering that she was paying attention.

Hopefully, it was Tatsuki, or whoever she had found to help. It shouldn't be anyone else, but Fujino had to entertain the possibility, at least, that someone else could have stumbled into the building.

"I'm back." Tatsuki said, confirming her identity. "You okay, Fujino?"

"I'm still conscious." Fujino replied. "Misaya's still unconscious."

"Good." Tatsuki continued. "I got the big guy from Urahara's place. He's here to help."

"Tsukabishi?" Fujino asked.

The voice of the man in question replied. "That's me, yes."

His footsteps sounded out as he crossed the room, approaching Fujino. "Arisawa told me you were stabbed."

"That is what happened." Asagami confirmed. "With a shard of glass."

"That complicates things." The man replied. "If it had just been a knife, I could heal your wound for you. Since it was glass, however, there is a chance that some of it may have broken off into the wound. In that case, healing you without removing them would cause more problems."

"How hard would it be to check the wound?" Fujino asked.

"It would be possible, but it would be difficult." Tsukabishi explained. "There are supernatural abilities that allow for analysing things, and I can use that ability to search your wound for glass shards, but usage on other people complicates the process, and a false negative isn't impossible. There are alternatives, however."

Taking a moment of silence to think, Tsukabishi continued. "I could prepare a spell that would undo the wound by reversing the series of events that caused it. That would ensure the wound was clean and clean your clothing in the process. It would be painful, however, and you would be exhausted in the process. It is not a swift progress, either. If there was more than one wound, it would take to long to be an actual option."

Pain was no issue for Fujino. She wouldn't feel anything, anyway.

"How long would it take? Fujino asked.

"Perhaps an hour." Tsukabishi thought aloud. "I wouldn't need to be here for the entire process, however, so I could ensure that Ouji is taken somewhere secure while you rest here for the process."

"Then go ahead, please." Fujino asked.

"Are you entirely sure?" Tsukabishi asked. "You would feel the pain of the wound for the duration of the healing process. It won't be something you can stop once it begins, either. Are you okay with that?"

"I am." Fujino nodded.

"If you are sure, then." Tsukabishi accepted the answer. "Could you move your hand away from the wound, please?"

Fujino did so, and a moment later, briefly felt his fingertips trace the cut on her stomach. It lingered momentarily, as Tsukabishi muttered something, before he pulled away.

"It will take a moment to begin properly." Tsukabishi explained. "But the process has begun."

"Thank you." Fujino responded. "You have been of great assistance. I apologise for asking so much of you."

"It is no trouble." Tsukabishi replied. "You have been working to resolve the incident with the Ouji and her familiars. I owe you something, at least, for ensuring that she didn't harm anyone. And even if you had not come, I would have been involved in this situation eventually. A mage with access to the resources that Ouji had is not something that can be ignored, let alone when the mage in question is in such a state."

Fujino turned her head towards where Ouji was still laying against the wall, to signify her shifting attention.

"You said you were going to take her somewhere secure?" Fujino asked.

"To the store, I believe would be best." Tsukabishi replied. "I would be able to monitor her there, and you know where it is. When your wound has healed, you may come to the store to see if she has awoken, if you wish."

"Thank you." Fujino replied. "Are you sure you can keep her secure?"

"She does not seem to be in a position to be much of a threat to anyone but herself, from what Arisawa has told me." Tsukabishi replied. "It would not take much to ensure she doesn't go anywhere, or try to harm anyone."

Fujino smiled, softly.

"I should be off, then." Tsukabishi noted, as he moved towards Ouji. "Oh, Asagami, keep in mind. This healing spell is a draining one. I would recommend that, once you have healed, you find something to eat. You will still be exhausted, but it will help."

Asagami nodded. "Thank you." She repeated.

"Farewell, then." Tsukabishi noted. "Arisawa, I assume you will want to stay by Asagami's side?"

Tatsuki didn't respond, but Fujino could gather she had responded nonverbally, somehow.

"Goodbye." Fujino waved her hand slightly, in the direction of the door.

"I will see you later." Tsukabishi replied. As he finished talking, the door shut.

There was silence for some time, followed by Tatsuki's footsteps approaching Asagami.

"You alright?" Tatsuki asked. There was a brief thud, as she leaned back into the wall, and slid down to sit next to Fujino. "Cut hurting much?"

"I'm fine." Fujino replied. A true statement, though one that would make it sound like she was okay with the pain, rather than not feeling it. But then, Tatsuki had seen Fujino be stabbed and not realise it for some time. Would she be asking about that now? Fujino didn't want to say it if she didn't have to, but given what had happened, she didn't know if she could conceal it anymore if Tatsuki asked about it. How was Fujino supposed to explain not noticing when she got stabbed?

"What about what Ouji said?" Tatsuki asked. "That weighing on you at all?"

Fujjino frowned. "What do you mean?"

It was obvious where this was going, Fujino felt. There was only one thing Misaya had said that would be worth following up, and it was the other conversation Fujino didn't want to have. Perhaps if she acted like she had no idea what Tatsuki was talking about, Tatsuki would stop thinking about it.

But that was only wishful thinking, wasn't it?

"It seemed like Ouji's words were bothering you." Tatsuki replied. "The stuff about... Y'know."

Fujino didn't reply, and she heard Tatsuki shift against the wall uncomfortably after a moment. It was naive to think staying quiet would prevent Tatsuki from wondering about it, but the point remained. Asagami Fujino did not, if she had any choice in the matter, want to admit to murder.

"You did go quiet while she was talking about it." Tatsuki continued. "I dunno what actually happened or anything, and I'm not gonna trust someone who was specifically trying to make you sound as bad as possible. But, like, if there was some kind of accident she was trying to pin on you or something and it's bothering you, I don't mind listening to any details. If it'd make you feel better."

Fujino almost laughed, at that. Some kind of accident? Was Tatsuki just determined to see the best in her?

Still, at this point, Fujino didn't think she could stay silent anymore. Tatsuki knew too much at this point already, and if her denial involved giving Fujino more praise than she deserved, then Fujino wouldn't be able to accept it.

"I've told you before, Tatsuki." Fujino replied. "I'm not a good person."

Tatsuki didn't reply, not right away. For a split second, before Fujino had spoken, it had sounded like she was about to say something. Now, however, those words died on her tongue.

"Everything Ouji said was true." Fujino admitted. "I killed six people within the span of a week. I spent most of that time hunting another person, and before I was hospitalised, had done my best to murder a woman for trying to stop me. Misaya didn't need to make me sound bad, and I don't need you acting like I'm worth sympathy because of it."

Tatsuki was speechless, apparently. Whatever reactions she had beyond that were lost on the blind girl.

The longer the silence reigned, the more Fujino began to regret simply telling Tatsuki that she was a murderer. It's one thing to hear it from someone like Ouji, but it was another for Fujino to just say it.

"I am not a good person." Fujino admitted. She had already spoken, so she may as well continue now. Perhaps it would help if Tatsuki understood, a little better. "I do regret it. Within those few days, I was too focused on my hunt that I didn't stop to think. I didn't realise how much of a monster I am until I was stopped. The fact that I was allowed to live after that is an injustice."

"That's..." Tatsuki began, trailing off immediately.

"It's what?" Fujino asked. "Monstrous? Incomprehensible?"

"...You said before, didn't you?" Tatsuki asked. "That the reason you got involved in the supernatural even when you didn't want to was because you wanted to feel like it wasn't wrong for you to exist?"

Fujino frowned. That was not the reaction she had expected.

"Then there's nothing to worry about." Tatsuki decided. "You feel bad about it and you're trying to be better. No point holding it against you."

What?

"Tatsuki?" Fujino asked. "Did you hit your head, at some point?"

"I suppose it does sound kinda dumb." Tatsuki admitted. "But... Well, I like you, and even if you say you've killed people, I've only heard about it. So I want to keep liking you. Does that make any sense?"

No, it did not. Fujino could understand Risu wouldn't care, Fujino had talked that girl down from suicide. But Fujino hadn't done anything as meaningful for Tatsuki. So why would she just brush it off like that?

"I'm sure there's more to it anyway." Tatsuki continued. "That, or you're really not the same person you were. I don't see you just killing people for the sake of it."

"That's because you don't know me as well as you think you do." Fujino replied. "I enjoyed it, Tatsuki. I killed six people and hunted a seventh because I enjoyed holding power over them. I tried to kill an eighth and even when she held a knife to my throat, I was smiling. Asagami Fujino is a monster."

"So what changed, then?" Tatsuki asked. "You said you didn't realise how much of a monster you were being, right? People don't decide murder is bad just on a whim. What changed?"

Fujino bit her lip. Why was Tatsuki making this so difficult? Why was she being so understanding? Why wouldn't she just accept that Fujino was a bad person?

That thought lingered for a moment, before a question dawned on Fujino.

Why did she want Tatsuki to think she was a bad person?

It didn't feel right, that Tatsuki was listening to all of this, and acting like she didn't care. But why was Fujino so determined to reject all sympathy? Why was Tatsuki's acceptance rubbing her the wrong way?

Ah, perhaps it was obvious. Arisawa Tatsuki had learnt of Fujino's worst secrets under the worst circumstances Fujino could imagine, and Asagami Fujino was a creature so determined to keep her secrets and appear normal that once upon a time, it had seemed perfectly logical to hunt down and murder a man, and it had not even crossed her mind that her motivation was a monstrous one such as self-satisfaction.

Tatsuki's acceptance was provoking this reaction because Fujino hated that someone like her could be accepted.

Sighing, Fujino laid back against the wall, tilting her head upwards to face the roof.

"My apologies, Tatsuki." Fujino said softly. "Allow me to explain properly."

Tatsuki didn't reply right away, and Fujino took that silence as her cue to continue.

"I don't want excuses or rationalisations for what I did." Fujino explained. "But I still overreacted. I'm sorry."

"It's fine." Tatsuki replied. "It's... This seems like a complicated issue. One that bothers you a lot. Me dismissing it probably was upsetting, sorry."

"Don't apologise." Fujino responded. "You're not the problem. I just don't want to try to excuse what I did."

Pushing back against the wall to force herself upward again, Fujino began her proper explanation.

"If I hadn't made excuses for myself then, I could have stopped a lot earlier than I did." Fujino explained. "I killed four people on the first night. Out of everything, that would be the one that could have been forgiven. I was almost stabbed. I thought I had been. But in the aftermath, counting the bodies and realising that there was a survivor, I made excuses. I told myself that I wasn't murderous, I simply needed to silence someone. I needed to find the one man who had survived and kill him to protect myself, I thought."

Looking towards Tatsuki, Fujino continued. "I killed another man the next night. He was a friend of the one survivor, he might have known where to find him. I killed him as painfully as I could to extract that information, and then told myself it was necessary."

A bitter laugh slipped from Fujino's lips. "The next time I killed someone, I didn't even tell myself anything. I crossed the road without looking, heard the truck coming, and then instead of running out of the way, I killed the driver. Then I moved on, and I didn't stop to think about it until after I had been stopped."

"And I didn't even stop myself." Asagami concluded. "If I hadn't been stopped, if that woman hadn't held a blade to my throat and then asked while I was smiling, I never would have realised what kind of monster I was. I would have kept killing, and then I would have found more reasons to continue."

"...I really don't know what to say." Tatsuki replied. "It's... A little unbelievable, you know? It's hard to picture you the type. But... What I said before, I think it still stands. I think you're a good person, Fujino. Even with all that, I can't stop thinking of you as a good person."

Asagami closed her eyes. It made sense, she supposed. Her story must have seemed ridiculous. It was no surprise that someone would put more weight in what they've seen of a person over what they've heard.

"I guess it's kinda dumb, trusting someone because they listened to you complain about your life once." Tatsuki continued. "But I'm going to trust you anyway. And if you don't want any excuses, I won't make any. I'll just trust the Fujino I know."

"Thank you, I suppose." Fujino smiled.

The two girls fell into silence for a moment, and Asagami mused for a moment that she wasn't sure what else to say now.

How do you follow up a conversation like that? You can't exactly go from talking about your sins to discussing the weather, could you?

Though, considering it a moment longer, the shift in the seriousness in topic would be less awkward then mere silence.

"Is it still raining, outside?" Fujino asked.

Tatsuki didn't reply right away, presumably as surprised by the shift in topic.

"...Yeah. Still raining out." Tatsuki confirmed.

"That's nice." Fujino continued, trying to think of how to turn the topic into enough of a conversation to take Tatsuki's mind off the earlier, heavier topic. "I have pleasant memories of the rain. It's comforting."

"...Huh." Tatsuki noted. "That's different, that's for sure."

"What do you mean?" Fujino asked.

"It's just the opposite for me." Tatsuki replied. "I... Well, you saw already that I don't take it well when my friends don't tell me about stuff I could help with. When I was a kid, a friend of mine lost a family member. He kinda shut down a bit after that, and I could never figure out how to cheer him up. It was raining a lot then too, so the rain just kinda reminds me of the time. Makes me feel kinda powerless, you know?"

Fujino looked away. "I see. I apologise for bringing it up, then."

"No, you didn't know." Tatsuki replied. "Though now I'm curious. Is there a reason you like the rain, or is it just a natural fondness?"

Fujino almost gave a response to that, but hesitated.

Somehow, even now, the fact that she couldn't feel pain was something she didn't really want to divulge. It was such a stupid thing, after Tatsuki had found out so much already. But that insensitivity to pain was still something strange about Asagami Fujino, and just sharing it went against every instinct and experience she had.

It felt rude, to hear Tatsuki's explanation on hating the rain, a reason tied to her past, without responding in kind. And yet, it was still in the nature of Asagami Fujino to keep secrets.

Looking away from Tatsuki, Asagami tried to ignore the sense of guilt that began to gnaw at her.

"Natural fondness, I suppose." She lied. "Maybe a half-forgotten happy memory."

Tatsuki didn't respond vocally, and Fujino joined her in silence. It was still somewhat awkward, but at the very least, the last thing they had talked about wasn't about how Asagami was a murderer. The fact that the two girls had such different opinions on the rain was a better thought to linger on, even if Tatsuki's memory of the rain was tied to something painful.

It was almost funny, Fujino thought to herself. The two of them had very little in common, and their opinion on the rain was just one difference. Arisawa Tatsuki was a girl who got involved with the supernatural with little prompting, and had wanted to involve herself more when she realised her friends had been involved without telling her. Asagami Fujino was a girl who had never wanted to be anything more than normal, but had gotten involved in the supernatural anyway to assuage her guilt at her continued existence. Arisawa Tatsuki was a straightforward person, while Asagami Fujino was secretive.

Arisawa Tatsuki thought that Asagami Fujino was a good person, which was something Fujino would never do herself.

And yet, despite all the differences, the two had managed to enjoy each other's presence. It wasn't something Fujino would expect, if it hadn't already happened.

It was nice, Fujino mused. And as upset as she had been at the moment, the fact that Tatsuki was willing to stay by Asagami even after finding out her darker secrets was nice as well.

Even if Asagami was too much of a monster to ever deserve it, the fact that someone could know so much about Fujino and still stay by her side was comforting.

Smiling to herself, Fujino leaned back against the wall, and waited for her wound to heal.

"...You know." Tatsuki said suddenly. "Something occurs to me."

"Hm?" Fujino queried.

"Didn't Ouji say she had one last fairy going around?" She asked. "In the graveyard? Maybe we should take care of that before someone walks by and gets hurt by it."

"Oh." Fujino remembered, now. Misaya had said that, hadn't she? "I suppose I should take care of that-"

 **[X] "-Once my wound heals."**  
 **[X] "-After seeing if Misaya is okay, in Urahara's store."**


	21. Chapter 21

**[X] "-Once my wound heals."**

The wound came to heal, in time. Asagami didn't notice the exact moment her wound had healed. Supposedly, if Fujino could feel the pain the healing was supposed to involve, it would be easier to determine when it was done, but as insensitive as she was, Fujino couldn't rely on that.

Over time, though, Fujino kept checking the wound. Once she couldn't feel blood around where the cut was, and once she felt the cloth over her stomach recovered, Fujino could gather that the process was at least almost done.

Still, it wouldn't do to assume it was done before it truly was. She didn't want to cause any problems, and who knows what could happen if she started moving around early?

So to be sure, Fujino flickered her ESP on briefly, bracing herself for the pain just in case. Nothing came, and Fujino waited for a moment to be sure that she really wasn't feeling any pain. Turning her ESP back off again, Fujino pushed against the wall to stand up again.

"It seems that the wound has healed, Tatsuki." Fujino mentioned.

"It's all good?" Tatsuki asked. "Doesn't hurt?"

"I don't feel anything from the wound." Fujino responded. "Shall we go, then?"

"Off to the graveyard?" Tatsuki asked.

Fujino shook her head. "Tsukabishi had said I should have something to eat once the wound healed. I should listen to his advice before we deal with all the last fairy."

"Oh, yeah, right." Tatsuki replied. "I've got some money on me, and there should be a bus route between here and the graveyard. Or, well, near enough, and there's a good fast food place near there."

"Perhaps I should eat something more nutritional?" Fujino asked. "If it is supposed to help me with the aftereffects of the healing, then perhaps it would be better to eat something healthier."

"They have salad." Tatsuki shrugged. "And besides, the main thing was exhaustion, right? I'll just get you an energy drink."

"Absolutely not."

Tatsuki laughed lightly.

"You are making fun of me." Asagami realised.

"It's just too easy." Tatsuki replies, still chuckling to herself.

Asagami sighed. "I am leaving."

"Don't forget your umbrella." Tatsuki noted. "The rain's let off a bit, but it's still raining a bit, and it could start up again."

"I suppose I need my cane as well." Fujino replied. "It should be somewhere around here."

She paused.

Oh, she had lost track of where it was during that whole incident, hadn't she? And she didn't really want to use her ESP for something as minor as this, either.

"Tatsuki, could you get my cane and umbrella, please?"

"Sure, gimme a sec." The girl replied, moving around the building. It took her some time to fetch both umbrella and cane, but she had handed both to Asagami before long.

"Thank you, Tatsuki." Fujino said.

"No problem." Tatsuki replied.

Making her way towards the door, Fujino tried to think some more about what Misaya had said about her last fairy.

"Tatsuki." Fujino mentioned, as she felt the door at the end of her cane. "Didn't Misaya say that her fairy in the graveyard was luring in stronger Hollows?"

Tatsuki stopped moving behind Fujino, and seemed to take a moment to think.

"...She did, yeah." Tatsuki replied. "So you're thinking there might be a lot of Hollows at the graveyard?"

"Possibly." Fujino replied. "Assuming the Hollows are being lured to Misaya's fairy specifically, they should be seeking it out, so they should be distracted from anyone else nearby. But using my psychic power attracts Hollows."

"...So you're thinking that the graveyard might be really dangerous once you use your power." Tatsuki summarised."

"Essentially." Fujino continued. "In which case, it would be important to determine where Misaya's fairy is first. I could eliminate it at a distance, but if a Hollow attacks while I am distracted, I don't think I would be able to stop it before it hits me."

"So what's the plan, then?" Tatsuki asked. "Do I look for the fairy first and tell you when I've found it?"

"I suspect I will need to borrow your eyes, Tatsuki." Fujino confirmed. "It should be enough if we go far enough into the graveyard to find where the Hollows are gathering. Once we do that, we can simply go away from that end of the graveyard, and I can kill Misaya's fairy, and whatever Hollow she has it controlling at the time."

"Then we run, right?"

"Yes." Fujino continued. "Hopefully, the Hollows won't be able to follow us once I stop using my ESP, but if you see any of them following us, we might just have to kill them all instead."

Fujino hummed in thought before she gave a final, conclusory statement. "The worst case scenario, as far as I can determine, would be if we are attacked before finding the fairy. In that case, I would need to use my ESP in order to defend us, and then hopefully deal with any more that are coming. You should run, in that case."

"No way." Tatsuki replied. "I managed to throw that Hollow here around a bit earlier. I should be able to hold off Hollows long enough for you to take care of them."

"That's too dangerous." Fujino replied. "You could be hurt."

"And so could you." Tatsuki pointed out. "Besides, I gotta know. That thing with Ouji's Hollow earlier, I'm not entirely sure what happened. I just kinda acted on instinct and moved faster than I knew I could. Tsukabishi had said that the pills I was taking to not get my memories eaten were gonna reinforce my body to let me fight Hollows at some point, so is it happening already, or was that just adrenaline or something?"

"This might not be the best situation to test if you can defend yourself against a Hollow." Fujino countered.

"Then we just need to be more subtle." Tatsuki sounded somewhat dismissive as she talked, in a tone of voice that Fujino would usually picture someone using while shrugging. "But here, how about we make a deal? If a Hollow does attack us before we find Ouji's fairy, you kill it, then we run and wait a bit. I'll carry you or something."

Asagami took a moment to think about it.

"As long as you promise to be safe." Fujino decided ."In that case, I can accept that deal."

"Alright." Tatsuki said cheerfully. "Let's get going then."

* * *

It had taken a while to get there, but once they had eaten lunch, the two girls made their way to the graveyard.

As they approached the gated away plot of land where the dead were buried, Fujino felt a creeping chill crawl down her spine. She didn't know what it was exactly, but it felt as if, the closer she came to the graveyard, the worse the feeling got.

Why was with the sudden sense of foreboding?

"Fujino? Is there something wrong?" Tatsuki asked.

It took Asagami a moment to realise that she had stopped moving.

"Sorry, Tatsuki." Fujino sighed. "I just have a bad feeling."

"...Should we be worried, then?" Tatsuki asked. "I mean, you're the psychic."

"I'm not currently using my ESP." Asagami explained. "And my power is clairvoyance and telekinesis, not foresight."

"If you say so." Tatsuki replied. "I don't see any Hollows from here, but it's a big place. Uh, just so you know, there's a bit of a walk between the entrance and where the graves are, and there's a bunch of trees around the path, so not seeing anything here doesn't mean yet, I guess."

"I understand." Fujino accepted the answer. "Still, this should be the location where Hollows gather. Perhaps that sense of foreboding was related to that and if that is the case, then we should start being careful moving on from here."

"Yeah, alright." Tatsuki's footsteps starting moving again as she spoke. "I'll let you know if I see anything."

Scanning the ground in front of her with her cane to ensure the path before her was clear, Asagami continued forward, ignoring the way the air seemed to stagnate as she moved deeper into the graveyard.

The soft rain around Asagami intensified slightly as she walked, but not enough to overpower the sound of Tatsuki's footsteps. The raindrops bouncing from her umbrella were soothing, a nice counterweight to the lifeless atmosphere that was permeating more as she walked further into the location.

"Wait, stop." Tatsuki's voice suddenly became very quiet, and it was hard to hear, but the alarm in her voice was enough for Fujino to listen to her instinctively. Tatsuki's footsteps moved backwards, closer to Asagami.

"Hollow." Tatsuki explained in a whisper. "Not looking our way, doesn't look like it has a fairy on it anywhere."

"So it should be heading towards the one we're looking for." Fujino reasoned. "We should follow it."

"Yeah." Tatsuki accepted. "But give it a second. It was kinda close, so let it get ahead a bit before we try to track it."

"We need to be careful." Fujino agreed.

A moment passed, before Tatsuki let out a relieved sigh. Speaking louder than she had a moment before, she spoke again. "I think that's far enough. Let's go."

She paused for a moment.

"It was going through the trees." Tatsuki pointed out. "It might be hard for you to get through if you try to avoid everything with your cane. Here, take my hand, I'll guide you."

"Thank you, Tatsuki." Fujino accepted, briefly tucking her cane under the arm holding her umbrella before stretching her hand outwards. A warm hand took hers, and Fujino nodded as she secured her grip. The rain fell on the outstretched limb lightly, but it was a pleasant feeling altogether.

Tatsuki's arm tugged at Fujino's, and the blind girl made sure to tread carefully, as she followed her friends guidance.

"Careful there, Fujino." Tatsuki said, after a moment. "Tree root sticking out. Don't want to trip there."

Tatsuki stopped moving ahead of Asagami, as the girl felt around with her foot to find the root. Once Fujino had stepped over it, Tatsuki moved once again.

"Thank you, Tatsuki." Fujino commented.

"You don't need to thank me f-"

Tatsuki stopped talking very suddenly, and her grip on Fujino's hand tightened. Fujino stopped moving herself right away, and waited for Tatsuki to confirm if they were in danger, or if it had passed.

"...Sorry." Tatsuki whispered, after a moment. "Hollow. As I was saying, you don't need to thank me for basic things like telling you where to walk."

"If you insist." Fujino whispered back, as Tatsuki's hand started pulling her forward again. "What happened with the Hollow?"

"It had stopped moving for a moment." Tatsuki explained. "Didn't notice for a bit, so I was worried it had heard me talking to you."

"Is it still within sight?" Fujino asked.

"No." Tatsuki answered. "But I saw which way it was heading. It had just stopped for a bit there."

"And there isn't any other Hollows around, is there?"

Tatsuki stopped again suddenly. "Coast looks clea-"

She cuts herself suddenly as she grabs Fujino's other arm, and pushed. The sudden force swept Fujino off her feet, and her body hit a tree a moment later. She felt no pain from the collision, but the surprise was enough to disorientate Asagami, and she didn't realise Arisawa's reasoning until her verbal warning came.

"Hollow!" She shouted, as the sound of something rushing through the air came closer. It was obvious, in hindsight. Fujino should have realised it the instant Tatsuki started moving her.

Activating her ESP, Fujino didn't waste time to observe the Hollow closely enough to determine its exact attributes. Instead, once she identified it, charging through the space Fujino had stood a moment before, she focused her vision.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's torso shears in two as it approaches Tatsuki, who had moved to stand her ground against it. Unlike last time, however, the Hollow's body did not fall on Tatsuki. Fujino had torn it apart with too much force, and its legs collapsed on the spot, while it's upper body shot upwards, high enough that Tatsuki was able to duck under it.

The Hollow died, and Fujino took a moment to catch her breath.

"Sorry." Tatsuki spoke first, as she watched the Hollow's body fade away. "I saw it coming and my first instinct was to move."

"It's fine, Arisawa." Fujino replied, taking a moment to savour the lingering pain in her back, where she had hit the tree. It had an odd feeling to it, unlike most other things Fujino had felt in what little time she could feel. The texture of the bark was a new one for Fujino.

And on top of that, it was raining. The rain was intensifying, and Fujino was starting to feel her clothes grow damp as she rested against the tree trunk.

"Fujino?" Tatsuki asked, after a moment. "Are you okay?"

"Oh." Fujino replied, snapping back to the present moment. "My apologies, Tatsuki. I had spaced out."

Oh, right, Fujino realised. Her ESP was active. There should be Hollows around that could sense it.

This was bad.

"Tatsuki, keep an eye out." Fujino advised her. "There could be more Hollows coming."

"Wh- Oh, shit, right." Tatsuki interrupted her own question. "Your power."

"I know which way that Hollow was heading." Fujino explained. "So I'll see if I can kill it now. If a Hollow comes too close, let me know so I can deal with it."

"Got it, got it. "Tatsuki replied, the concern heavy in her voice.

The rain was getting heavier, Fujino noted briefly, as she tore her focus away from Asagami and shifted her sight. Past the trees, there were graves, and just past where the first graves were, Fujino saw the first of the broken tombstones.

The first Hollow Fujino saw was pushing itself off the ground amongst the remnants of one of those shattered gravestones, before charging further into the distance. Following it with her sight, Fujino took a moment to realise what she was looking at.

There was easily a dozen Hollows gathered, in various states of harm, in various different shapes and sizes. One flew above the others with batlike wings, another lurked low to the ground like a lizard, and a third, frog-like Hollow leapt around the gathering Their focus was not united, Fujino observed, as the frog-like Hollow's tongue surged towards the Hollow bat, and threw it into the ground. It was chaotic, it was bestial, and as the bat ripped off the frog's tongue and began to devour it, Fujino couldn't believe that these creatures had once been human souls.

And in the centre, where all of the Hollows were gathered, was one that resembled the ones Misaya had controlled. Where the others were animalistic, bestial, and rampaged with a primal instinct, the one that stood in the centre was featureless and plain, even it's mask paved into a faceless expression of its simple nature. If the other Hollows were too wild for Fujino to believe them human, then this one was too streamlined, too unnatural in its design, to be the soul of any living thing.

But she had grown distracted.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's head spun. It did not react, and it felt more like undoing a screw than tearing apart a sentient being. Before long, the head was torn asunder, and the closest Hollow- A turtle with a screaming mask in the centre of its shell- Suddenly shot forward, it's head extending to bite into the featureless Hollow's chest.

It's fangs descended, and the characterless Hollow's fists closed around the turtle's neck, squeezing it until it detached from the rest of the Hollow.

Fujino just starred, for an instant. The Headless Hollow wasn't dead?

No, more than that. As Fujino observed it, she watched as a second head began to form. As it did so, its arm extended, stabbing into the turtles skull, and as Fujino watched, she observed as the head of the turtle Hollow slowly lost its form, briefly resembling the one of its attacker, before fading into the fairy-controlled Hollow's arm as the Hollow in question finished regenerating its head.

It had healed. A new mask had formed on its face, and it continued to devour the turtle, as the other Hollows tried to take the chance to pounce on either target. The bat Hollow ripped off the turtle's leg before taking to the skies, and the frog attempted to jump on the faceless Hollow back. Misaya's Hollow moved its arms backwards, at an angle that would have been impossible for a human being, and its shoulders crushed the frog on its back.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's entire upper torso tore apart this time, shearing in two as Fujino put more force into her telekinesis. A Hollow shaped as a pig darted forward, biting into the legs left behind, but before Fujino could even think of relaxing, the frog Hollow dissolved into the sleek arms. Before it had even hit the ground, Misaya's Hollow had regenerated once again.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend!"

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

 _"Bend!"_

"What's going on?" Tatsuki asked suddenly. "Fujino, what's the problem?"

"It's…" Fujino took a moment to wrestle with the frustration boiling within her, to no avail. "It's not dying!"

"What?"

"It just keeps healing." Fujino explained. "I can't see Misaya's fairy, but the Hollow keeps healing!"

At the gathering of damned souls, Fujino saw the lizard-like Hollow turn its head in her direction, and took the moment to deal with it.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend!"

The lizard, at least, died like it was supposed to. But now, everything was looking Fujino's way. Even Misaya's Hollow had began to stalk towards her.

"They're coming." Fujino mind raced. Perhaps it was the ESP talking, but she really wanted to kill the weaker Hollows right now. It wouldn't be hard. The lizard had died instantly, and it wasn't healing. But Misaya's Hollow was approaching, and if she started killing, it could reach her before she had the chance to run or kill it.

The plan was, if this happened, to turn off her psychic power and run. But Fujino had just seen her target devouring other Hollows, and Misaya had said it was gathering power. Absorbing the frog had let the Hollow regenerate a lower body almost immediately. If Fujino left it to devour the rest, would it be able to heal even faster? Should she try to kill its food, so she could make it as easy to kill as possible?

 **[X] She couldn't afford to let it get stronger. She had to stand her ground.**  
 **[X] That was the ESP talking. Follow the plan. Get some distance first.**


	22. Chapter 22

**[X] That was the ESP talking. Follow the plan. Get some distance first.**

It would be simple, to just start unleashing herself on the Hollows and watch them crumble away. It would be so easy. And it was so tempting, too. So what if Misaya's controlled Hollow had resisted Fujino's force a few times? If she kept trying, she could put it in its place eventually.

But, no, that wasn't the plan. She couldn't just stay here being a beacon for Hollows. Asagami had to get her head straight. She had to think clearly, normally. And right now, that meant retreating.

Deactivating her ESP again, Fujino took a moment to orientate herself. She was leaning against a tree, near Tatsuki, with the rain falling heavier with each passing moment. Neither her umbrella nor her cane was at hand, and Fujino didn't know if she would have time to collect them.

"Tatsuki." Fujino spoke up. "We need to go. Get some distance."

"Alright." Tatsuki replied. "I'll grab your cane."

"I might need your help." Fujino explained. "I can only move so fast, and I want to get as much distance as I can from this place when the Hollows come."

"I got you." Tatsuki's arm suddenly scooped around Asagami's back, and pulled her up. "And here."

Something came into contact with Fujino's hand, and she closed it around what she realised after a moment was her cane.

"Thank you, Tatsuki." Fujino said, as Tatsuki's other hand came under her to secure the hold. Tatsuki started moving, slowly at first, as Fujino continued. "Are you sure this is alright, though? It is raining pretty heavily. If you fall over-"

Tatsuki interrupted her. "And how long is it gonna take you to walk through this area while watching for all the roots and not slipping over and not being able to see? I said I'd carry you or something if we needed t-"

Tatsuki stopped, both movement and speech, before stepping around something.

"I'm just going to focus on this." Tatsuki decided, before falling silent.

A moment passed, as Fujino listened to the falling rain and vague, distant inhuman Hollows barely sounded human, but even despite that, Asagami could hear the pain in their screeches.

And as Tatsuki forged on to put distance between the girls and the Hollows, Fujino thought on the target. The unadorned, austere figure that was identical to the other Hollows Misaya had controlled. If it could recover from Fujino's attacks, then how could she kill it?

While her psychic powers were active, and her mind torn away from the clear thought that was linked to her blindness and lack of sensation, Fujino would insist on just trying until it worked. And, perhaps, that could work. It had absorbed the frog-like Hollow when she had twisted it's legs and torso apart, so perhaps it needed to take in the power of other Hollows to heal faster. In that case, if she could just destroy all of it fast enough, or keep up the pressure, then she could kill it.

But Asagami couldn't be absolutely sure that would work. She didn't even know Hollows could heal, before now. For all she knew, the mechanics of it were more complex than she could understand.

An easier path, then, would be to kill the fairy controlling it. That would have to have some impact, considering how it was what allowed Misaya to control the Hollows. All she had to do was find it.

With the last two of Misaya's Hollows that Fujino had encountered, the fairy was rested in the holes on their body. It was something Fujino didn't exactly think about often, but most Hollows seemed to have that. She was fairly sure she had seen similar holes on the beast-like Hollows fighting the more streamlined figure.

So then why didn't she remember seeing a hole on this Hollow?

Had it been covered up? Had the Hollow been able to fill in the hole, or somehow disguise it? If it was capable of healing, something Fujino hadn't observed in any previous Hollows, then perhaps it could do something like that. And in that case, the fairy could be hiding inside the hole which was sealed over, perhaps?

If so, then all Fujino had to do was find it. If she could just tear into the Hollow enough to determine where the fairy was, she could destroy it, and hopefully the issue will have been resolved.

It had been the upper torso of the Hollow that had regenerated after Fujino had torn it in half, so if the fairy was still controlling the Hollow, then it was definitely above the waist. And before that, Fujino had decapitated the Hollow, so it was also below the neck.

So, then, the plan was for Fujino to use her ESP to tear the Hollow apart, as much as she could, except as the first step of the plan instead of the entire plan.

As Fujino finished that thought, Tatsuki stopped moving.

"This should be enough distance, right?" Tatsuki seemed to realise after a moment that the rain was loud enough to make it hard to hear her, and she raised her voice as she continued. "It's around about the entrance again."

"That should be far enough." Fujino replied. Tatsuki shifted her grasp on Fujino for some time, until Fujino felt her feet on the ground again, and she stood on her own power again.

"If we need to run again." Fujino began. "Then we may have some trouble. How much farther can we go before we run into an area where people might find us?"

"Technically?" Tatsuki asked. "If it wasn't raining so much, I'd say we'd risk running into people here. Considering the weather, I'd say we'll be fine unless we have to run back to the road. People might drive past us there. That's fairly close, but we have room to run still."

"Good." Fujino replied, as she spun to face back the way she and Tatsuki had come from. "If the Hollows from there approach us, I will let you know. Could you watch my back, Tatsuki? In case any more Hollows arrive."

"I got you." Tatsuki replied.

Taking a breath, Fujino focused, and once again activated her ESP.

As the ability to feel sensations returned to Fujino, the girl suddenly realised how cold it was. The rain was pouring heavily enough that her clothes had been soaked, and a light breeze was enough to make Fujino shudder from the chill.

But Fujino didn't have time to savour the rain. Not right now. Who knows how long she had until the Hollow came for her again.

Casting her sight back where she had come from, Fujino noted her umbrella on the ground amongst the trees and roots, and before much longer, found her target.

The featureless Hollow had turned towards Asagami again, but then turned back briefly. Expanding the scope of her gaze slightly, Fujino saw one Hollow behind it, the bat-like one from earlier. It had been injured, its wings removed, and yet it prowled closer to the taller Hollow regardless. It's mask moved as if it was speaking, and then it lunged.

Misaya's Hollow extended a hand, catching the bat-like Hollow by the neck, and the wingless bat tried to gnaw its way free. But then, it froze suddenly, and stared at the nondescript Hollow.

From the black-coloured void of the Hollow's chest. A face began to form. Phantasmal and barely there, but a face nonetheless, resembling an old man. It seemed somewhat sorrowful, as it met eyes with the bat.

The natural Hollow recoiled from the face, and from what little of its face was visible from beyond its mask, Fujino could see a shocked expression.

It took a moment for Fujino to think about what could be happening. She had forgotten, with her focus on finding Ouji, what exactly Hollows were. They were people, tormented by their inability to move on, driven to monstrosity. So what had Misaya's Hollow done here? Who's face was that?

Misaya's fairies could take memories, Fujino remembered. Had it looked into the Hollow's mind to find a face that would provoke that kind of reaction?

Misaya's Hollow crushed the remains of the bat, which didn't resist as it was killed, and Fujino realised she had been distracted.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's arm strained as Fujino twisted its shoulder, watching it crumble like a bent spoon at a cheap magician's show, After a moment of strain, it burst apart, and the faceless Hollow dropped the remains of the bestial Hollow.

Misaya's Hollow turned in Fujino's direction, as Fujino lined up her gaze over the Hollow's chest.

Repeat the phrase enough, and-

The Hollow vanished, and Fujino's eyes widened as she rapidly widened her gaze.

It had gotten faster. Not to the point of being beyond comprehension, but she had been looking too closely, and the sudden movement had caught her off-guard. She couldn't focus that much if she wanted to be able to destroy it.

It would be harder, then, to accurately target its vulnerability. But regardless, Fujino believed she could do this. Tracking the Hollow as it came closer, Asagami repeated her own personal mantra again.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's other arm stopped and twisted, and as the rest of the Hollow continued to charge forward, Fujino's psychic force held the limb in place. The Hollow tore its own arm off, in truth. But it was already healing by the time Fujino refocused her gaze.

It was approaching far too fast for Asagami's liking. She needed to slow it down.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow collapsed as it's leg was ripped away, but in a heartbeat, it was crawling. One arm already completely regenerated, one leg untouched, and a third limb almost completely formed, it was enough that the loss of speed only lasted a heartbeat.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

Finally, Fujino was able to unleash her psychic power across the Hollow's chest. If the Hollow's internal structure was anything like a humans, then the point that Fujino tore apart would be the centre of the ribcage, halfway through the torso. The body was torn asunder, and for a moment, the Hollow stopped moving.

"Fujino!" Tatsuki called suddenly. "Behind you!"

Once again shifting her vision, Fujino left behind the faceless Hollow and looked behind her back. The Hollow was some distance away, but still far closer than Fujino would have liked.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's head twisted and ripped, and the force of the spiraling power popped off its head in a few seconds. The Hollow died, and Fujino took a moment to linger in the feeling of the kill.

Instantly, Fujino regretted that. First of all, she was lingering in her own sinful excesses. Even if a Hollow dying was a mercy to the human soul, she was ultimately still enjoying a human's death.

But, more importantly, she had been distracted. Where was Misaya's Hollow now?

Shifting her gaze back, Fujino saw it almost immediately. It had healed, it was fast, and it was too close for Fujino to run away.

Before Fujino could even shout a warning, she heard Tatsuki make an alarmed sound, and the Hollow burst out from the trees and into the open.

There wasn't time to run anymore, but at this stage, Fujino could guess where the fairy was. It was either in the stomach of the Hollow, or in line with the heart, roughly. If she unleashed her power on the second target, then if she was wrong, the Hollow would be separated from its arms.

The Hollow charged at Fujino, and the girl reflected that, if she was wrong, and the fairy could control the Hollow's legs without it's upper torso, then it simply running into her could injure her severely.

But there was no time to think about that.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's body began to twist, and it took Fujino a moment to realise she had miscalculated. The Hollow was going to reach her before she could destroy its upper body. Trying to put more force into her ESP in the hopes that perhaps she could destroy it sooner, Fujino ignored the impending threat in favour of hurting it as much as she could.

Just as the Hollows fist descended upon Fujino, Tatsuki moved. As distracted as she had been, Fujino hadn't even seen the other girl approach. She stood between Fujino and the Hollow, her forearms crossed above her as she stopped the Hollow's fist, and as Tatsuki cried out in pain, she slid back, almost colliding with Fujino as the force of the blow pushed her away.

The Hollow was still charging, but it had slowed, and that split second delay had given Fujino time. It's upper body was torn asunder, and as the remains of its lower half kept moving on, Tatsuki suddenly turned and shoved Fujino to the side.

The pain Asagami felt as she hit the dirt wasn't the worst she had felt, but it was still distracting. Despite herself, Fujino couldn't help but savour the sensation for a second. The sudden pain had been unexpected and as she was now, Fujino couldn't help but endure the sensation. She would rarely have the chance to feel something similar, after all.

But that moment of distraction was too much. If Fujino hadn't gotten the fairy, and she gave it time to regenerate, that would be a problem. Especially since Tatsuki was still in its path.

Refocusing her gaze to look at the world around her again, Fujino saw Tatsuki get up off the floor herself, where she had thrown herself down to avoid the remains of the Hollow. She was holding her arm strangely, and as the rain poured upon her, she approached the Hollow's lower body slowly.

The remains of the Hollow weren't moving, and if it was healing, Fujino couldn't see it. But, as Tatsuki stepped closer, she saw something shifting over the stomach of the Hollow.

Similar to what had happened just a few moments ago, with the batlike Hollow, a face formed on the Hollow's body. Ghostlike and vague, but a replica of Tatsuki's own.

"I just didn't want to be left out again." The fake face on the Hollow spoke with Tatsuki's voice, before shifting, losing shape for a second before taking form again. "I like you, and even if you say you've killed people, I've only heard about it. So I want to keep liking you."

Tatsuki stopped moving, and the Hollow started to regrow an upper body. Fujino, still on the ground, focused her vision on the face on the Hollow.

She didn't know what the Hollow was doing, beyond it mimicking things Tatsuki had said before, but she had had enough of it.

Repeat the phrase enough, and it becomes a curse.

"Bend."

The Hollow's ghostly body buckled under the pressure of the deadly force. For a brief second, Fujino saw the face, and the Hollow's body around it, shrink and shift, leaving a hole behind as the fairy took form and tried to escape.

But too little, too late. Fujino watched as the Hollow died, and the force of the body crushing inwards killed the fairy before it could move.

The legs collapsed, and the remnants of the Hollow faded away. And then, there was only the rain.

Turning off her ESP, Fujino let herself fall back into darkness and numbness, and pushed herself off the ground. Her hand slipped in a puddle briefly, but it only took a second to get back to her feet.

"Tatsuki?" Fujino asked, over the rain. "Are you alright?"

Behind her, Fujino heard what sounded like Tatsuki's voice, but it was too quiet to hear over the rain. Fujino turned towards the sound, and Tatsuki spoke up. "I'm fine. Arm hurts. Doesn't feel broken, though."

"You froze up for a moment there." Asagami pointed out. "What happened?"

Fujino had heard what the Hollow had said, and she had a vague idea of why. Earlier, the Hollow had done the same thing to the bat-creature Hollow to make it stop fighting. So had it tried to do something similar with Tatsuki?

Tatsuki had been taking those pills to make sure the fairies couldn't steal her memories, but Tsukabishi had said that Fujino was likely to be immune because of how much power she had, and the Hollow was controlled by the fairy to gather more power. Perhaps it had been able to brute force past Tatsuki's resistance?

"...I think it was trying to mess with me." Tatsuki answered, as she approached Fujino. "It had my face for a moment, and it was talking. Stuff I've said before. Not sure what it-"

Tatsuki stopped, suddenly.

"...Didn't want to be left out…" She muttered to herself, hard to hear over the rain, but still audible now that she had come closer. "...Want to keep liking you…"

"Tatsuki?"

"Is that what it was trying to imply?" Tatsuki's voice was suddenly more audible, easier to hear. "That the only reason I brushed over all that stuff earlier was because I didn't want to stop being involved?"

"What stuff?"

"You know, Fujino." Tatsuki sighed. "The murder stuff."

Oh.

Fujino didn't know how to react to that, so she stayed quiet, and hoped that Tatsuki would talk some more.

"I just…" Tatsuki floundered verbally for a moment. "Is that right? Would I react differently if Orihime and Ichigo told me about the whole supernatural thing, if I didn't feel like I needed to be more reliable? Am I only really trusting you because I want you to trust me?"

Stepping closer to Tatsuki, Fujino said the first thing that came to mind.

"Does it matter?"

Tatsuki didn't respond right away, and so Fujino continued.

"I mean, you can't control the reason behind your thoughts." Fujino said. "So what if the reason you were willing to trust me was selfish deep down? You've helped me a lot, Tatsuki, and you've been a good friend. Even if it's only because you wanted to be trusted, even if it's only because you wanted to be included, that doesn't change anything."

"...You really think so?" Tatsuki asked.

"I do." Fujino replied. "And even if it wasn't just your subconscious thoughts, even if you had intended to ignore my sins to feel better about yourself, you said something earlier today that I feel holds true. 'I like you, so I want to keep liking you.'"

"...Heh." Tatsuki eventually responded. "That's the most inspirational thing that I've ever seen someone covered in mud say."

Wait, hold on.

"Excuse me?" Fujino asked. "What did you just say?"

"...Did you not notice?" Tatsuki asked. "I did kinda push you into dirt to get you out of the way of the Hollow, and it's raining pretty badly. There's mud all over your clothes."

"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Fujino asked. "I can't be seen like this."

"Are you actually panicking over this?" Tatsuki asked. "I… It's not that bad, the rain's already gotten most of it gone, and your clothes are damp enough already that nobody's gonna notice anything off about them beyond that. Nobody's going to notice."

"You thought it was acceptable to not tell me I was covered in mud for so long." Fujino complained. "Your opinion is clearly invalid."

"Okay, how about this." Tatsuki suggested. "We can't exactly do anything about that now. So let's head back to the Urahara store so you can try to talk to Ouji and maybe you can get more clothes there. It's a bit of a walk but we can probably stick to alleys and nobody will see you."

"Thank you." Fujino replied.

Honestly, she was being a bit childish, but she had already had a stressful few days. She didn't need people thinking she was some ruffian who played around in the mud on top of that.

"I'll just go get our umbrellas real fast." Tatsuki said. "I mean, not much point now, but maybe we'll get a chance to dry up."

"Don't go off alone." Fujino said. "We don't know for sure all the Hollows are gone."

"Alright, then." Tatsuki's hand met Fujino's. "Here, hold on."

Fujino nodded, and as Tatsuki pulled her back towards the forest, the black-haired girl started talking again.

"So, you were going to talk to Ouji at Urahara's store, try to convince her to go back home?" Tatsuki checked.

"That was the plan." Fujino confirmed.

"So what's the plan for that?" Tatsuki asked. "Try to get the guys in charge of the store to help explain why her plan won't work? Or did you want to keep things personal."

"She might not open up as easily if there are strangers there." Fujino mused. "But on the other hand, I'm not sure I could convince her to come home myself. The logic behind her goal being impossible would seem less convincing coming from me, and an emotional argument would be pointless."

"You never know." Tatsuki replied. "What're you thinking?"

 **[X] When Fujino talks to Misaya, she should be on her own.**  
 **[X] Perhaps it would help if someone else was there to talk to Ouji as well.**


	23. Chapter 23

**[X] Perhaps it would help if someone else was there to talk to Ouji as well.**

Thankfully, the two girls made it to Urahara's store without being seen by any passerbys. It had taken some time to do it, but nobody had seen Fujino's clothes stained with mud. Now that the two were approaching the store, there was some people who would inevitably see them, but they were people that Fujino could actually explain the situation to. They might initially misunderstand the situation, but once the initial awkwardness was dealt with, they wouldn't think Fujino some kind of mud-dwelling hooligan.

Tatsuki opened the door ahead of Fujino, and the purple-haired girl followed her inside the building. With Tatsuki holding the door open for her, Fujino was able to enter without taking the time to make sure the door was closed herself.

"Ah, Asagami, Arisawa." The voice recognisable as Tsukabishi's greeted. "I was wondering when the two of you would be here."

"Hello, Tsukabishi." Fujino greeted. "Is Misaya okay?"

"She woke up a while ago." Tsukabishi explained. "She hasn't done anything threatening or harmful, to herself or others. She was trying to pretend she hadn't woken when I tried to speak with her."

"I see." Fujino said. "I would like to speak with her, if I can."

"Of course." Tsukabishi replied. "Would you like a dry set of clothes, by the way? You look as if you could use some."

"That'd be nice." Tatsuki spoke up from behind Fujino. "It's really cold."

Tsukabishi was quiet for a moment, and when he spoke again, he seemed to be addressing Tatsuki.

"You hurt your arm." Tsukabishi noted. "How did that happen?"

"...We took a bit of a detour on the way here." Tatsuki admitted. "We forgot to mention while you were there, but Ouji had mentioned having a fairy controlling a Hollow in the graveyard. We took care of it."

"I see." Tsukabishi noted. "Arisawa, please, allow me to examine your if it seems fine nw, I have noticed that it is common for the recently supernatural to ignore an injury that they can ignore with their enhanced endurance, until more pressure is put on it. A cracked bone could be ignored now, but may make it easier to break it in the future."

"I guess." Tatsuki conceded. "Feels fine, but you're the expert."

"Asagami." Tsukabishi changed topics briefly. "If you go downstairs from here, Ururu or Jinta should hear you coming down. Ask either for a fresh change of clothes, and they should help you to a room."

"Thank you." Fujino replied. "Before I go, can I ask something?"

"Go ahead."

"I need to convince Misaya to stop pursuing her friends resurrection." Fujino explained. "But I am unsure if she would be convinced by what I have to say. You and Urahara are more knowledgeable. Perhaps you could help to convince her of the impossibility of her task?"

"Kisuke would be more likely to get through to her, I believe." Tsukabishi mused. "I believe I would be too blunt with such a depressing topic, and I am unsure of how to phrase it without causing Ouji to withdraw and reject my words. Kisuke would be better suited to reasoning with her."

"Should I ask him to help me, then?" Asagami asked.

"I'll let him know that you want him to speak with Ouji with you." Tsukabishi replied. "He's downstairs as well. Arisawa, if you follow me to the free room so I can examine your arm in an isolated environment, we'll pass him on the way there."

"Sure." Tatsuki replied. "Let's go then."

Tsukabishi started moving first, and Fujino listened for his footsteps so she could make sure she followed them. Making sure to leave her umbrella leaning against a wall as she started to move again, Asagami felt around in front of her with her cane. Briefly, it touched against what Fujino presumed was a shelf, so she moved around it.

"You know." Tatsuki spoke up, suddenly. "I'm still not entirely over how the old candy shop is apparently where the experts on magic in Karakura set up shop. Like, you guys sell candy?"

"Why not a candy store?" Tsukabishi asked. "It's not as if we have reason to sell anything else as our mundane cover."

"Fair enough, I suppose." Tatsuki continued. "Just not the kind of store I'd expect to see hiding a secret room of supernatural stuff."

"So the cover is working well, then?" Tsukabishi asked.

Tatsuki stopped moving for a moment, then chuckled. "Yeah, I guess so."

"By the way, Asagami." Tsukabishi mentioned. "We're almost at the stairs."

"Thank you." Fujino replied. "You two go ahead. I can go down stairs myself, but it's slow. You two could go ahead."

"In that case." Tsukabishi continued. "I'll tell Ururu to prepare a set of clothes for you. Actually, I don't think you ever picked up the clothes you left here when they were bloodstained, so perhaps she could return those to you."

"I presume that, since you are presenting that as an option, they have been cleaned?" Fujino asked.

"They were." Tsukabishi confirmed.

"Thank you." Fujino replied, as she stopped moving. Her cane tabbed around and felt what seemed like the edge of a doorway. "This is where the stairs are?"

"Yes." Tsukabishi replied. Fujino stepped aside to let Tatsuki by easier, and waited until she heard the sounds of footsteps on the stairs.

"I will see you soon." Fujino said.

"Same." Tatsuki replied. "Uh, I think I'll sit out the Ouji talk, I don't think she likes me. But I'll see you after that at the latest. Probably before the talk, unless it turns out my arm really is hurt."

Fujino nodded, and listened as the two sets of footsteps continued downstairs. Technically, she could have just walked at the back of the group, but for a moment, she waited.

Misaya was down those stairs. Likely in a room by herself, and Fujino wouldn't run into her the instant she went downstairs, but Misaya was still down there. The last two times Fujino had been around Misaya, someone had been hurt when Misaya panicked and tried to get away.

It wasn't a very well founded fear that suddenly struck Fujino, but it was one she wanted to consider. How well could Misaya hear from inside the room she was in? Would she hear Fujino or Tatsuki if they started talking? If she did, would she panic again? Would she try to escape again, or hurt herself in the attempt?

It took Fujino a moment to calm her nerves. Perhaps it was possible, but it wasn't likely. Misaya had awoken before Fujino arrived and hadn't attempted to escape, and Tsukabishi would presumably be sure not to let the situation continue on for much longer. Wherever Misaya was, it was likely a room meant to keep her from escaping easily, or perhaps wouldn't let her hear much of the outside.

Even if there was the possibility, Fujino shouldn't have to worry about it.

Testing the area in front of her again, Fujino felt around to find the exact point the stairs began, and measured how large the steps were, before she started making her way down.

At the bottom of the chair, Tsumugiya Ururu was waiting, and escorted Fujino to a room with a towel and her clothes. The rain had made her hair wet enough that she wasn't able to dry it completely, but the rest of Fujino was dry enough after a moment, and she wanted to speak with Misaya quickly. Once she was in clothes that weren't soaked with the rain, Fujino stepped out of the room.

"Ah, you're done." The voice that Fujino recognised as Urahara's spoke. "Tessai said you wanted me to talk to your classmate? Hoping she'll listen to her elders?"

"Something like that." Fujino replied. "It's good to speak with you again, Urahara."

"Wow, it's rare to hear that." Urahara noted. "These days, kids your age tend to be so disrespectful, y'know? Always mocking me for the hat or acting like delinquents."

"My sympathies." Fujino noted.

"My thanks, Fujino." Urahara quipped back, a tad too familiar for Fujino's liking. "Tatsuki's friend Ichigo's probably the worst, you know. I mean, he was under a lot of stress, but you'd think he'd be a bit more grateful for the help I provided him. Maybe he'll get around to it when he gets back, but more kids need to be like you. All nice and polite and all."

"Thank you." Fujino muttered, trying not to show that faint embarrassment she was feeling from the praise."

"Anyway, Ouji." Urahara refocused the conversation. "I'll let you take the lead on the conversation. I'm a stranger so I'll just chime in when you want me to. Or if it looks like it's working. That sound good?"

"It does." Fujino accepted.

"Great!" Urahara continued. "Now follow me, I'll show you to Ouji."

Fujino followed his footsteps, as far as they went. As the footsteps ended, Fujino heard Urahara tap against the wall, and heard the sound of the tapping shift as if the material itself was changing.

"In here." Urahara said, opening the door. Fujino waited for him to enter, and followed.

"Misaya." Fujino began. "Are you awake?"

There wasn't a reply.

"She's awake." Urahara noted, after a moment. "We gave her food a little bit before you arrived, and some of its gone now. She's just faking."

"...Go away." Misaya muttered softly.

"Misaya." Fujino tried again. "Please. Talk to me."

The silence hung for what felt like a long time, before Misaya muttered something under her breath.

"Where am I?"

"Underneath a candy store." Urahara replied.

"...That place" Misaya continued weakly. "Fairies could never get in."

"Misaya." Fujino tried to control the focus of the conversation more. "Are you okay? You ate some of the food, but have you had enough?"

"...I stabbed you." Misaya continued. "Why do you…"

She trailed off again, but Fujino gathered the meaning well enough.

"You need help." She explained. "I want to help you."

"Don't need help." Misaya muttered.

"Don't lie to me. How long would you have gone without food, if someone didn't literally put it in front of you?"

Misaya refused to reply once again.

"Please." Fujino continued. "I'm worried about you, Misaya. Talk to me. I want to help you."

Again, there was no reply. As she stood in the silence, Fujino turned her head towards Urahara, hoping he would have some idea of what to do.

"Alright then, let's just get to the point." Urahara sighed. "Ouji. Trying for resurrection, I hear?"

Misaya inhaled sharply, before falling silent for a moment. Composing herself, perhaps?

"What's it to you?" Misaya spat out.

"Well, recently, we had this Magus going around ripping memories out of people's heads while trying to resurrect someone." Urahara replied. "And that's not exactly something I like to hear about. I live here. It's a problem. I'd rather head it off before it happens again."

"...Fine." Misaya muttered. "Doesn't matter. I already have my…"

She trailed off, before speaking again in a panicked voice.

"Where is it?" Misaya asked. "My last fairy? I can't feel it. It should be…"

"I dealt with it." Fujino interrupted. "Someone was going to get hurt, Misaya. You left it attacking everything in sight in a graveyard. It could have hurt someone."

"I needed that." Misaya's voice faltered as she spoke, quickly descending from a shout to a mutter. "I… You destroyed all my baselines… That was the last fairy I had. If I make another, it won't… I can't…"

She trailed off again, failing to complete her sentence.

"I'm sorry, Misaya." Fujino said. "But you're going to hurt people, and yourself, if you keep doing this."

"Don't care." Misaya muttered. "I want to see her again…"

"Do you really think you could have done it?" Fujino asked. "That making a powerful enough Hollow could have, somehow, brought Tachibana back?"

"Something has to work." Misaya replied. "Maybe that would have."

Again, Fujino turned towards Urahara, giving him his cue to speak.

"Why does something have to work, again?" Urahara asked. "I'm curious, here. Do you have a reason for this, or do you just want it to be true?"

"...It has to work." Misaya repeated. She hadn't answered the question at all, and yet the answer was still clear.

"I see." Urahara mused. "So then, follow up question. How much do you know about how the afterlife actually works?"

Once more, Misaya didn't respond. Fujino had to admit, she found it frustrating. Still, perhaps it was a sign. Misaya still wasn't opening up enough, if she kept refusing to answer. If Misaya was going to reject the conversation whenever she didn't want to answer a question, Fujino wasn't going to be able to convince her of anything.

"Misaya." Fujino took over the conversation again. "I know you don't want help. But this isn't going to be any easier if you don't talk."

"Just let me leave." Ouji muttered.

"So you can keep starving yourself?" Fujino asked. "So you can refuse to look after yourself? So you can suffer and die alone?"

"Don't pretend to care." Misaya muttered. "You're only here because you want to feel better about what you've done. I could be anyone doing anything and you'd be trying to help."

"You know." Urahara spoke up. "This is the first time I've heard 'You'd help anyone with anything' be used as criticism of a person's character. That's usually considered a virtue, isn't it?"

"Asagami." Misaya ignored Urahara as she continued. "Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"Because I don't want to." Fujino responded. "I don't want people to fall apart and hurt themselves and hurt others if I can do something about it. Why is it so wrong that I want you to be okay?"

"I don't need to be okay." Misaya said. "I need to bring Kaori back. She's the one who needs help."

"And why don't you need help?" Fujino asked. If she could get Misaya to talk more about her reasoning, it would be easier to convince her to stop.

"You know why." Misaya continued. "I'm a murderer."

"It was an accident." Fujino countered quickly, before Urahara could get the wrong idea from what little information he had of the situation.

"I tried to kill an entire class of people."

"You needed help, and the only person who knew didn't give you any help." Fujino reasoned.

Closing her eyes, Fujino took another moment to think. Urahara didn't know anything, so how much could she say without saying something that gave too much away?

"Looking at what you've done, I can't see anything wrong." Fujino said. "I've done worse. If I was allowed to be forgiven, then why can't you?"

"It's not the same." Misaya muttered again.

"How?" Fujino asked. "I need you to talk to me, Misaya. I want to resolve the situation, and I need you to talk if we do this."

When enough time had passed for Fujino to realise Misaya had gone quiet again, Asagami decided to take an educated guess. She hoped she was understanding this right.

"It's because you're the one deciding what can be forgiven, isn't it?" Fujino asked. "You won't accept my help because you don't think you deserve it. You wanted to bring Tachibana back to life because you feel guilty, you said that yourself. So the reason you keep rejecting my help is because I want you to stop hurting yourself, and you don't want to stop."

"Shut up." Misaya bit out. "So what?

"What are you going to change by working until you die?" Fujino asked.

"I'll bring Kaori back." Misaya muttered back.

And once again, the conversation had returned to the point where Urahara would be useful. Misaya had clammed up briefly there, but hopefully, she would have opened up a bit more since last time.

Urahara took his cue, as he spoke up.

"Are we so sure about that?" Urahara began. "We kinda got sidetracked there, so I've been waiting for a while now to give the big exposition dump I was all prepared to say five minutes ago."

"What are you talking about?" Misaya asked.

"Well, see, I'm something of an expert when it comes to the afterlife." Urahara mused. "I've got books on it and everything. You go there when you die and all that."

"Riveting." Misaya spat.

Well, sarcastic comments was still more open than silence. Perhaps some emotional variety would stop her from just getting depressed and falling silent again? Or, at least, Fujino hoped that's what Urahara's intent was.

"Now, see, the afterlife is big on clean slates." Urahara explained. "Unless you're a terrible person. They suffer forever. Everyone else goes to get reincarnated. Usually fairly quickly. How long ago did your friend die?"

Misaya let out a brief gasp. "You…"

"Yeah, I mean it's probably too late." Urahara shrugged. "Tachibana's soul's gone now. Actually, from what I heard, it was a suicide, so it was probably too late by the time you found out she was dead.

"You're lying!" Misaya spat out.

"Nah." Urahara's tone was casual as he explained. "I mean, it takes a lot of willpower to stick around the afterlife, you know. Well, and spiritual power. Even the people who do stick around tend to forget their lives real fast without that. Someone actively escaping life? They're not sticking around."

"That can't be right." Misaya's voice was frantic as she kept speaking. "There had to be some way to linger. There has to be some way to bring her back!"

"Feel free to let me know if you find out how." Urahara replied. "I've got all the books and notes lying around. You can look at them all you like."

"Faked." Misaya dismissed immediately. "Can't be real. There has to be a way."

Her tone was desperate, and she hadn't even considered the possibility of looking at whatever Urahara had lying around. At this point, it was becoming clear that this was becoming an emotional issue again. And that, then, was Fujino's cue.

"Misaya." She brought attention back to herself again, before she continued. "I understand what you're feeling. I know what it feels like, to feel guilty, to want to make things right. So please, listen to me when I say this. I want to help you."

"If you understand, then why stop me?" Misaya asked. "And why is it okay for you to spend several days tracking me down and being stabbed, but not for me to do this?"

"Because I'm not going to kill myself to help someone else." Fujino replied. "As hard as this has been, I've at least been eating. I've slept. I've taken time to try to unwind. You haven't."

"I…" Misaya began, before trailing off again.

"But I understand." Fujino picked up as soon as she realised Misaya wasn't going anywhere with her statement. "I understand why people saying it isn't as bad as you think can be hard to handle. Earlier, I had a conversation with Tatsuki about this exact thing."

Stepping forward to approach Misaya, Fujino extended a hand. The last time Fujino had given Misaya this chance, Ouji had stabbed her. This time, Fujino was hoping Misaya would take her hand. Even if it would only be a symbolic gesture.

"You're going through a lot." Fujino said. "And Misaya, I want to help you. I want you to be safe. I want you to get through this. Even if you feel guilty, even if you feel like you have to suffer like this to try for an impossible goal, just so you can cope, there has to be a better way. There has to be something else."

"...It has to be this way." Misaya muttered again. "I…"

"Why does it have to be this way?" Fujino asked. "Why can't I help you find something else?"

"I want to see her again!" Misaya's sudden shout caught Fujino off-guard, after how weakly she had spoken thus far. "Kaori didn't deserve to die! She was suffering and couldn't do anything and nobody noticed! I…"

Misaya choked on her words, and Fujino took the opportunity to fill in the blanks.

"It's complicated, isn't it?" Fujino asked. "It's not just one thing after all. It's partly guilt and partly grief, it's the desire to feel better about yourself and the desire to fix what went wrong. You're not sure what to do, so you're grasping at straws. You saw the possibility in the notes you stole and you leapt at it. Am I right?"

Misaya seemed to struggle with words, for a moment. In the end, it was Urahara who spoke instead.

"She's nodding her head." He explained. "Think you're getting through to her, Fujino."

With a soft, hopefully reassuring smile, Fujino focused her head in Misaya's direction again.

"I know it's confusing." Fujino said. "I don't know what to do either. But I know this isn't working. Please, Misaya. Let me help you. I can find a way for you to work through this without hurting yourself. Without eternally chasing the impossible. Even if we don't know what to do now, I'm sure it'll be okay in the end."

Fujino gave Misaya time to process her words. She was getting through to her, at last. After all the effort of finding her in the first place, it wasn't even all that hard.

"...Don't want to go back to Reien." Misaya said, sounding more as if she was speaking to herself. "Too much pain. I don't want to look at that place anymore. Those people. They let her die. I almost killed them. Can't…"

Biting her lip, Fujino tried to think of a response.

 **[X] After everything that had happened, people would understand how hard this was on Misaya. People would be able to help her, if she came back to Reien.**  
 **[X] Before Fujino could think of how to speak, Urahara raised a suggestion of his own. "I might have an idea. It's more important to be safe than to go back, right?"**


	24. Chapter 24

**[X] Before Fujino could think of how to speak, Urahara raised a suggestion of his own. "I might have an idea. It's more important to be safe than to go back, right?"**

Asagami turned her head to face towards the shopkeeper as he spoke up, and waited for Urahara to continue.

"Stop me if I've gotten something wrong here." Urahara began. "But as far as I can tell, the main issue here is that Ouji's not in a state where she can be trusted to look after herself, right? Or, at least, could use a hand with that?"

Fujino nodded slightly, hoping Ouji wouldn't take it the wrong way. She had started accepting Fujino's reasoning, but Asagami didn't want to risk offending her.

"And on the other hand, Ouji's deal is a bit complicated." Urahara mused. "I'm not entirely convinced she's given up right now, just that she needs help. So she needs some kind of emotional support, maybe some evidence that we're telling the truth and resurrection's off the table, and heading back to your academy might not help here mindset much. Am I making sense here?"

"I see the point you are making." Fujino said. "Ouji's mental state is more important than her returning to Reien, yes. Where are you going with this?"

"Just an idea." Urahara replied. "But this place has a spare room. Ouji could stay here."

"What?" Ouji's voice sounded confused. Had she not expected that suggestion.

"It's an idea." Urahara repeated. "I've got all the books on the theory that can prove what is and isn't possible. Supervision to make sure you don't try some risky ritual based on a misunderstanding. Nobody here who you've tried to kill, so you've got nothing to feel guilty about.."

"Arisawa." Ouji replied.

"She doesn't live here." Urahara pointed out. 'You'd never have to see her again, if you didn't want to."

"And what do you get out of it?" Misaya asked, the suspicion heavy in her voice. "People don't just do nice things for people for no reason. What do you want?"

"Not everyone has an angle." Urahara defended himself.

There was silence for a moment.

"Okay, fine." Urahara relented. "I did a little bit of digging when I heard about your story and I found a name that explained a lot. Kurogiri Satsuki. Your mentor, I presume?"

Ouji didn't reply, so Fujino did instead. "Misaya had mentioned his name at one point."

The sooner Urahara got to the point of this, the sooner they could discuss his solution.

"See, he's a real scary name to hear in certain communities." Urahara continued. "I don't know much about the guy, but I know what he's capable of. You know about his Universal Language stuff, right?"

"...He mentioned it once." Misaya said. "But not what it was."

"That's probably for the best." Urahara mused. "But see, problem is, the fact that he was here at all is a bit of a problem. From what I do know about the guy, he tends to trade in favours. If he's Japan, that's because someone called him in. I know a few people who might want to deal with the kind of things he can do, and if any of them got any kind of information on his Universal Language stuff? That'd be a problem."

"So what do you want me here for?"

"Not much." Urahara shrugged. "It is mostly just altruism. It's just that you did spend some time around good ol' God's Word. Keeping you close at hand is useful, in case you suddenly recall him talking about anything important. Or have anything of his."

"...There was a journal full of notes." Misaya said. "I didn't understand it, it was in too many different languages. It's in the abandoned hospital, now. That's all I have from him. Everything else was the fairies."

"Alright, then." Urahara nodded. "Then we're back to altruism, then. Stick around as long as you need."

"I don't…" Misaya began, before trailing off. "How do I know I can trust you?"

"I suppose you don't." Urahara shrugged. "It's better than just living in abandoned buildings and not eating, though. And if you can't stomach going home…"

"The last time an old Magus offered me help without strings attached, it was a trick." Ouji said, though the tone of her voice sounded like she was talking to herself more than anyone else.

"I get it." Urahara replied. "Trust issues. No surprise. But it's your choice, in the end. Most I'll ask you to do is answer questions about your old teacher and maybe help with the chores when the kids are slacking. If you don't believe me when I say that, you're free to leave. I'm not interested in forcing anyone's hand."

"Misaya." Fujino spoke up. "I don't know if this helps, but I trust Urahara. He had invited me to warn me of the dangers of Hollows before he even knew you were a problem. I do not think he is the sort of person who would take advantage of you."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence, Asagami." Urahara said. Fujino didn't reply, instead leaving the opportunity for Misaya to speak.

She was still silent for some time before she spoke again.

"...I can change my mind, right?" Misaya asked. "I don't… If this doesn't work, if I want to leave, can I..?"

It wasn't a complete question, but it enough for Fujino to know where it was going.

"I don't see any reason why not." Fujino stated. "Assuming you're in a good enough state to look after yourself, or you have something prepared. As long as you stay in contact with people so they can make sure you're okay. Right, Urahara?"

"I'd probably get yelled at if I let her go off on her own like this, but if she was good enough to go, I don't see the issue."

"Well, Misaya?" Fujino asked. "Is this okay for you?"

Misaya took some time to give her reply. "I… Let me think. I need to think about it."

"That's okay." Asagami assured her. "You should probably take some time to think about it anyway. Rest, make sure you're thinking clearly, all of that."

Misaya let out a heavy breath, and Fujino waited to see if she was going to say anything else.

"...Can I be alone, please?" Misaya asked, her voice wavering. "I… Really want to be alone right now."

"That's fine." Urahara replied. "Are you going to eat that food, though? If you don't like that stuff, I can go get some bread or something."

"I'll eat." Ouji promised.

"Then I'm satisfied." Urahara replied. "If you've come to a decision, knock on the door a few times, I'll come over as soon as I can."

"I'll see you soon, Misaya." Fujino replied, as she turned to leave the room."

Misaya didn't reply, and as Ouji left, Urahara only a step behind, she felt a pang of worry. Ouji should okay now, at least in terms of whether or not she would try to escape, but emotionally, she must still be hurting. Was it really okay to leave her as she is? She wanted to be alone, and she didn't seem like she was a risk to herself or others, but Fujino still felt some doubt.

But at this point, I don't think this was something Fujino could change. She was going to be worried about Misaya a lot. If Misaya was going to stay in Karakura Town instead of returning to Reien, then Fujino would probably be worrying about Misaya a lot.

For now, Fujino had other things to deal with. Right now, for instance, she should go and see Tatsuki.

"Which way did Tsukabishi take Tatsuki?" Fujino asked.

Urahara took a moment to think, before tapping Fujino's left shoulder. "Turn that way and walk. Straight ahead, you'll find a door. They're in there."

"Thank you." Fujino stated.

"Oi, Fujino, can I ask a favour?" Urahara asked. "I want to head off to the abandoned hospital and grab that book before anyone else thinks to poke around in their. If Ouji starts knocking before I get back, mind talking to her for me?"

"Of course." Fujino replied.

"Good, good." Urahara hummed. "Tell Tessai I've gone out. Bye."

Urahara went on his way before Fujino could say anything else.

It might be impolite to think, but he seemed rather odd. He had been extremely helpful across these last few days, but he was still odd.

As Fujino made her way towards the door where Tatsuki apparently was, it occurred to her that it had only been a few days since she had come to Karakura Town. It was the Eighth of August when she first heard about Misaya going missing, and it was only the Eleventh now, wasn't it?

It was good that things had been resolved so quickly, so that Misaya didn't waste away and, less importantly, so that Fujino didn't get in trouble for being away from Reien for too long. But it was strange. It felt like it had been longer than just a few days. She had really bonded with Tatsuki quickly, hadn't she?

Fujino's cane tapped against the door ahead of her, and realising she had reached her destination, Asagami knocked.

A moment passed, and then a door opened.

"Oh hey, Fujino." Tatsuki's voice was cheerful as she saw her. "Good timing, Tsukabishi just finished up. My arm's good, so he just dulled the pain a little."

"That's good to hear." Fujino smiled as she entered the room.

"How'd things go on your end?" Tatsuki asked. "How's Ouji?"

"She's listening to reason." Fujino explained. "I don't think I can say she's okay, exactly. But she's listening to people, and we're making arrangements."

"Like what?" Tatsuki asked.

"She said it would be painful to go back to Reien." Fujino explained. "So Urahara offered to let her stay here while she works through her problems. She's thinking it over."

"Well, I'm glad that she's alright." Tatsuki noted." I mean, I don't really know her, but she did seem kinda messed up when we did meet. Vindictive, but I get it. I hope she's okay."

A thought occurred to Fujino at this point.

"Misaya said that she didn't want to see her almost-victims, as part of the reason she didn't want to return to Reien." Fujino mused. "And when Urahara brought up how she didn't have anything to feel guilty for here, she mentioned you."

"She did?" Tatsuki asked. "Why?"

"She did set that Hollow on you." Fujino pointed out.

"...Oh. Right." Tatsuki realised. "Kinda forgot about that. I was out of it for a while and I think I was more concerned about blowing your first shot at talking to Misaya. How'd that slip my mind?"

The voice of Tsukabishi spoke up, from the back of the room. "That happens sometimes, with those unused to magical healing. The lack of lasting consequences makes it easier to forget physical harm when it coincides with mental or emotional damage."

"Oh, are you there, Tsukabishi?" Fujino asked.

"I didn't want to interrupt, my apologies." He said. "I was planning on leaving, but you are presently blocking the door."

"My bad." Tatsuki said, moving aside. Fujino followed the sound of her footsteps and bowed her head apologetically in Tsukabishi's direction.

"It's no issue." Tsukabishi said. "I'll leave the two of you alone."

"Oh, Tsukabishi." Fujino spoke up. "Urahara told me to tell you that he's left the building. Misaya mentioned the notes she had in the abandoned hospital and he went to go secure them."

"I see." Tsukabishi mused. "I should watch the store, then."

He made his way out, and Fujino heard the door close.

"So, what were you saying?" Tatsuki asked.

Fujino took a moment to remember her train of thought.

"Misaya feels guilty about nearly killing a bunch of our classmates." Fujino explained. "And given she brought you up, I suspect she feels guilty about setting a Hollow on you. I was wondering. Do you hold that against her?"

"I guess not?" Tatsuki replied. "I mean, it kinda slipped my mind, so it's not like I hold a grudge."

"I see." Fujino mused. "In that case, could you try to talk to Misaya at some point? Or at least communicate that you don't hate her for it. She's dealing with a lot now, so perhaps the knowledge that you don't think she should feel guilty would help her."

"You think so?" Tatsuki asked. "I mean, sure, makes sense when you put it like that. But she got kinda pissed last time I tried to get involved. She might just not like me."

"Maybe." Fujino mused. "I'm not going to pretend that I can tell exactly what will happen. But you can be persuasive sometimes, Tatsuki."

"Can I be?" Tatsuki asked. "I didn't think I was."

"Remember this morning?" Fujino asked. "I wasn't exactly happy when you didn't care about my secret, and you managed to talk me into accepting your position."

"That wasn't really me, though." Tatsuki pointed out. "That was mostly you reacting to me being stubborn. Still, I'll see if I can talk to her, if you want."

"Thank you, Tatsuki." Fujino smiled. "It's nice to know that people are going to make sure Misaya is okay, when I leave."

"Oh, right." Tatsuki noted. "You were only here to find her, weren't you?"

"Indeed." Fujino replied. "Now that I have, I should return to Reien Academy soon."

"Reien's one of those fancy private schools with the different semesters and stuff, isn't it?" Tatsuki asked. "I guess you should stop skipping soon, ya delinquent."

"Stop that." Fujino huffed as she turned away from Tatsuki.

"Guilty conscience about truancy?" Tatsuki asked, mischief in her voice. "Worried that a truancy officer will be along to ask where you've been?"

"I'm not giving you the satisfaction." Fujino muttered.

"You're actually pouting." Tatsuki laughed. "This is amazing."

"You are a child." Fujino turned her head more to deny Tatsuki the view. The other girl laughed some more, and Fujino found herself suppressing a smile.

Perhaps it was just the knowledge that Tatsuki didn't seriously mean any of her teasings, but this was, somehow, almost enjoyable. Not that Fujino would ever admit that.

"...Still." Tatsuki shifted topic, her tone getting less cheerful as she spoke. "Leaving Karakura soon, huh?"

"Tomorrow, likely." Fujino replied. "It'll give me time to pack tonight, and let the hotel know I'm leaving."

"It'll probably be a while before we can meet again, in that case." Tatsuki sighed. "What with our school semesters not lining up. We should do something today, before you go, then."

"That would be nice." Fujino replied. "I'm planning to come back here before I leave anyway to see how Misaya is before I leave, but that'll have to be early so I can catch the train and make it back to Reien before class."

"You are the only person I know who wouldn't just take the excuse for one more day off." Tatsuki pointed out. "But anyway, if you'll be here tomorrow before you leave, I'll meet up with you before you go. Say goodbyes then and all. For now, let's just do something."

"A movie, I presume?" Fujino asked. "The last time we went, they did mention a few movies that had been dubbed and narrated so a blind person could enjoy them, and you did seem to be interested in some of them."

"You know what?" Tatsuki asked. "After this morning? A dumb cheesy action movie sounds good."

"Maybe." Fujino replied. "It's fair, I suppose. I did pick the last movie. Once Urahara gets back, we should go."

"Alright." Tatsuki replied.

The two of them fell into silence for a while again, and Fujino mused some more on how she would have to return home, soon.

She wasn't exactly fond of Karakura, not with the risk of ghost monsters still lingering, but it would still be strange leaving. Fujino had gotten close to Tatsuki, and it would be a shame to say goodbye, for however long it took to meet again.

And, if she were being completely honest with herself, Fujino had to admit that the repeated excuse to use her ESP, to be able to feel, had been nice. It wasn't a thought she wanted to linger on, not a temptation she wanted to cross her mind frequently, but Fujino didn't want to lie to herself by pretending otherwise.

It was strange, how much positive experience Fujino had with this place, considering the Hollows and the danger. But then, she had been able to convince Misaya to find somewhere safe to stay, while she worked through her issues. Having some fond memories of an experience wasn't exactly a bad thing, if it had all worked out in the end.

But perhaps she should think about leaving more tomorrow, when the time actually came.

Until then, Fujino should just enjoy herself. She didn't think it was wrong to do that, after all of this.

The day came and went, and far too soon tomorrow had come. One last time, Fujino returns to Urahara's store, to say her goodbyes.

 **[X] Arisawa Tatsuki was waiting in front of the store, alone, when Fujino arrived.**  
 **[X] On that particular day, Kurosaki Karin and Kon had coincidentally been at the location as well.**


	25. Chapter 25

**[X] Arisawa Tatsuki was waiting in front of the store, alone, when Fujino arrived.**

It was raining again, as Fujino walked towards Urahara's store. She had a train to catch soon, which meant she had to stay dry, so she wasn't enjoying the rainfall as much as she would have liked. Though that would require her to have her psychic abilities activated so that she could feel the rain on her skin, and Fujino didn't exactly have a justifiable reason to have her ESP active right now.

It was nice, though, just listening to the rain. Soothing. A large part of it was admittedly due to Fujino's own enjoyment of the rain, but she couldn't help but feel pleased. She had done everything she could to resolve this situation, and she had saved Misaya from her own self-destructive behaviour. Intellectually, Fujino knew that the rain would have come regardless of her success, but it still made her smile.

It felt like she was being rewarded for her efforts. As she stood underneath her umbrella, listening to the pleasant sound of the raindrops around her, Fujino couldn't help but feel like the world was letting her know she had done well.

Asagami Fujino's punishment for her sins was to eternally seek atonement, by helping people when she could help. In this situation, she had done so. And now, the rain that reminded her so much of those nostalgic moments had come. She couldn't help but feel as if the world was telling her that, with how much she had done, it was okay for her to be here.

It was okay for her to live in this moment, even if her existence was a sin.

She was here, and that was fine.

With that thought in her mind, Asagami smiled, as she approached Urahara's store.

She had been along this path enough times that she could remember most of it, so it was an easy path to walk. All she had to do was make sure she didn't run into anyone by tapping her cane in front of her, and she could let herself think about that sort of thing.

Before long, she reached the entrance of the store, and knocked. She waited a moment for people inside the store to hear her, before she opened up.

"Hey, Fujino." Tatsuki was the first voice that Asagami heard. "You're here."

"Tatsuki." Fujino nodded. "How have you been?"

"Alright." Tatsuki replied. "Raining a lot, so that's annoying. For me, I mean, I know you like it."

"That's okay." Fujino replied. That was right, wasn't it. Tatsuki had said that she felt powerless when it rains.

Perhaps, Fujino mused, Tatsuki talking to Misaya and helping Misaya with her guilt would help with that, at least a bit. It wasn't as if Tatsuki needed to stop thinking of the rain as a negative thing, but perhaps it would be better for her if she was able to make at least a bit of a difference and separate the idea of the rain from feeling useless.

"So, what times your train, anyway?" Tatsuki asked.

"It's some time." Fujino replied. "I'll be able to walk there and catch the train in time as long as I'm not here longer than half an hour."

"I see." Tatsuki mused. "I suppose you'll want to talk to Misaya first, then?"

"I think I should wait until Urahara or Tsukabishi comes up to let us know if we can." Fujino replied.

"I see…" Tatsuki replied.

A moment passed awkwardly.

"I'm going to miss you, you know." Fujino said. "This entire experience was strange, but it was nice, knowing you. Even if I didn't have much say in it, someone willing to accept what I've done was nice. And even outside of that, you were fun to be with."

"...Heh." Tatsuki chuckled. "Thanks, Fujino. I'm gonna miss you too. Until next time we meet up, at least."

"I'll look forward to it." Fujino replied. "Though, I'm not sure when that will be. I'll have to look into when the Reien semesters end while lining up to your school break."

"Or you could just come by when you can." Tatsuki replied. "We can just hang out after school."

"I wouldn't want to distract from your studies." Fujino frowned.

"It's fine." Tatsuki brushed off her concern. "I'm doing good enough in school, a few days off to hang out wouldn't make too much of a difference."

"If you say so." Fujino was doubtful that Tatsuki was giving an accurate description of how that would work out, but it didn't really matter.

"Who knows." Tatsuki sounded like she would be shrugging, if Fujino had to guess. "Maybe I'll drop by when I've got a semester off and you do."

"I doubt Reien would let you on the academy grounds." Fujino replied.

"Oh, right, super strict place, huh."

Fujino took a moment to think. "I suppose I could try to schedule periodic check-ups over here."

"Oh right, you had that medical thing, didn't you?" Tatsuki asked. "I kinda forgot about that."

"Yes, I did have an appointment when I came here." Fujino mused. "The school board should accept it if I said I want to have multiple doctors check me more frequently."

"We'll see how that goes, I guess." Tatsuki shrugged. "Any way we can keep in touch beyond that? I guess I could send letters to your school with your name on it, but, well, I dunno how to send a letter in braille…"

Suddenly, Urahara's voice spoke up.

"We've got books and the stuff you need here." The shopkeeper explained. "You can work out how to pay for it."

"Thanks." Tatsuki replied. "But anyway, Fujino, would your school pass on a letter to you if I sent one?"

"They would." Fujino replied. "And I might be able to stay in touch in return, if I can get people to write your address for me."

"Cool." Tatsuki replied.

Fujino shifted her attention. "Hello, Urahara."

"Hey, Fujinon." Urahara replied. "Here for Ouji, then?"

"Please don't call me that." Fujino replied. "We don't know each other that well. It's too familiar."

"Ah, that's a frosty tone." Urahara mused, not sounding that bothered at all. "Sorry, sorry. Still, want to see Ouji?"

"Is she well?" Fujino asked.

"She seems like she's improving." Urahara replied. "She's still a bit, uh, out there, I guess? But she's willing to talk. Wants to talk to you, actually. Not too sure on the details, but there's something she wanted to talk to you about before you go."

Oh?

"I should go and talk to her, then." Fujino noted. "Tatsuki, could you come with me?"

"Alright." Tatsuki replied. "You wanted me to say something to her anyway, so may as well."

"You two have fun." Urahara replied. "If she gets violent, try to keep the noise down, so we don't bother any customers, alright?"

"I'm sure it won't come to that." Fujino replied, ignoring the attempt at humour.

"Well, head on down, then." Urahara suggested. "She's in the same room as last time. Don't get the wrong room, the kids are asleep and Tsukabishi's doing some reading."

"Understood." Fujino nodded.

"Here, take my hand." Tatsuki said. "We'll get there faster if you let me guide you."

"Thank you." Fujino replied, making sure she put her umbrella down before keeping the hand extended. Tatsuki took it after a moment, and the two of them made their way towards, and then down, the stairs.

As they reached the door leading to Misaya, Fujino noticed Tatsuki hesitate. The other girl had stopped moving momentarily, before the door.

"Should you go in first?" Tatsuki asked. "I mean, if she's feeling a bit guilty about nearly hurting me, might be better to have you take the lead so she notices you first."

"That might be the case." Fujino mused. "Very well then."

Quickly using her cane to confirm the layout before her, and specifically where the door was, Fujino stepped forward and opened it.

It was quiet for a moment, as Fujino stepped in.

"Misaya?" She asked. "Are you there?"

It took another moment for the reply to come. "I'm here."

"How are you?" Fujino asked, as she heard Tatsuki slip into the room behind her.

"Fine, I guess." Misaya's voice sounded stronger than yesterday, though not as strong as Fujino remembered it being, back when Misaya was at Reien. "...Sleeping again was nice. Feel better now. More rested."

"That's good to hear." Fujino replied. "I hear you wanted to talk to me about something?"

"...That can wait." Misaya muttered. "Why is Arisawa here?"

"I asked her to be here." Fujino replied.

"I can leave if you don't want me here." Tatsuki interjected.

"..Let me guess." Misaya sighed. "This is the part where she tells me I shouldn't feel guilty for hurting her earlier, because you told her I did, and you want to make me feel better?"

Fujino shifted, feeling guilty that Misaya had seen through her intentions so easily. Even if it was the right thing to do, that tired tone in her voice sounded like Misaya didn't appreciate the effort.

Tatsuki spoke before Fujino could confirm it herself. "I mean, it's not like I blame you for that. I forgot it even happened, to be honest. A lot has happened, it kinda slipped my mind."

"...What?" Misaya's dumbfounded reply took a moment to come out. "How do you just… Forget, almost dying?"

"It wasn't that bad." Tatsuki replied. "I just would have been hospitalised if I hadn't been healed, and I was healed, so no harm done."

Misaya didn't reply.

"Like, I dunno if this is what you want to hear or if this is another situation where you want to be considered the bad guy." Tatsuki continued. "But really. I don't care, I don't mind. You were in a bad place, no lasting damage was done, nothing to worry about."

"...Liar." Misaya muttered.

"Really not lying." Tatsuki defended herself. "But it's not like I have any way to prove that. I can go now if you want, I've said everything I came to say."

Once again, Misaya was quiet for some time. Fujino reflected briefly on how much more comprehension of what was happening she would have if she could look at, and try to interpret, Misaya's facial expressions at times like this.

"...I want to talk to Asagami." Misaya concluded, eventually. "Alone."

"Alright." Tatsuki replied. "Understood. Leaving."

She moved briefly, and Fujino heard the door open and then shut behind her.

"Was she telling the truth?" Misaya's question came the instant the door shut. "Does she really…"

Misaya didn't finish her sentence, but Fujino could make a guess at what she meant.

"She had honestly forgotten when I raised the subject." Fujino said. "That's the truth. She doesn't hold anything against you."

Misaya fell into silence again, which Fujino was going to guess was a result of her being lost in thought. Eventually, Fujino tried raising another subject to discuss.

"You have decided to stay here, then?" Fujino asked.

"...Yeah." Ouji replied. "I… Need some time. There's some things I want to confirm, some things I want to do, and I don't want to go back to Reien. Not like this."

"I understand." Fujino replied. "I hope you are comfortable here. There should be people you can talk to if you need help."

"I know." Misaya replied. "I… Thank you."

"What was it you wanted to speak to me about, earlier?" Fujino asked.

"I… Just wanted to let you know something." Misaya said. "I don't know if this will help, but I think you should know."

Fujino waited, and Misaya took her cue eventually.

"...The fifth victim." Misaya explained. "The one you… Took your time with. He wasn't a good person either."

Fujino's pause was less intentional, this time. "I don't need t-"

"Let me finish." Misaya interrupted. "I don't know the full context of your guilt, but listen. He wasn't any better than the first four. He'd never done… That, to anyone, but he'd heard about you from the others. I saw his memories with the fairy Kurogiri had prepared. Just before you began killing him, he was getting ready to… Have his way with you."

While Fujino took a moment to process that, Misaya came to a conclusion. "I don't know if that helps or if you don't care, but… I thought you should know, either way. That most people would say he deserved to die anyway."

Misaya's aim was clear enough, here. She must have wanted to make it up to Fujino for doing so much to help her. This, then, was her way of doing that. Imparting information which only she had, which might come as some comfort to the person who had decided to help her regardless of what it would take.

As far as Fujino was concerned, the information didn't make a difference. She hadn't known that when she had tortured and killed that man. She had enjoyed it, and her other murders. She had still killed one person who was truly innocent. If the driver of that truck wasn't, then surely Misaya would have spoken of him as well.

But at the same time, Fujino couldn't help but feel happy.

Even if Misaya's words didn't change anything, she had still made sure to tell Fujino. She could have just not spoken, she could have kept the information to herself. Instead, she considered it important enough that she had asked Urahara to let Fujino speak with her.

Even if Fujino didn't think she deserved it, the fact that Misaya had tried to console her like that brought a smile to her face.

"I appreciate the intent, Misaya." Fujino explained. "Thank you."

"...The intent." Ouji replied. "Not the message."

"It doesn't matter who the victims were." Fujino explained. "The sin was what I did, not who I did it too. The fact that one more person I killed was a sinner as well doesn't change that I did it. Or that I enjoyed it."

"I suppose." Misaya replied. "I don't really get it, but I really wouldn't think poorly about it. If you think about it, a guy like that dying is probably a good thing."

Fujino didn't reply. She didn't agree with Misaya's attempts to ease Fujino's guilt, but she didn't want to start an argument over this. She wanted to leave Karakura Town in a good mood, knowing that Misaya would be improving in her absence. Fujino thought it would be important not to have an argument before she left.

It likely wouldn't help if Fujino insisted on carrying her guilt with her while trying to convince Misaya to move past hers. With that in case, it would be important to let the topic drop for now.

"In any case." Fujino shifted the topic to avoid having to discuss it further. "Are you going to be okay here, Misaya?"

"I should be." Misaya replied. "Urahara said as long as I tell him anything about Kurogiri I remember and help with the store, I can stay for as long as I need."

"That's good to hear." Fujino stated.

"I…" Misaya began, but not going anywhere. After a moment, she tried again. "Urahara hasn't let me look at his books yet. He told me to wait a few days to make sure I'm properly in the right mind."

"I see." Fujino replied. "I'm sure that, whatever answers you find, it'll be okay."

"...I still want to see her again." Misaya admitted. "I want to hold on to that hope. Even if everyone says I can't, I…"

She floundered for words for a moment.

"...I don't want this to have been for nothing." Misaya completed.

"It won't have been." Fujino consoled her. "In the end, as long as you come out of this okay, then it wasn't for nothing. If this all helps you move past what happened in Reien, then it wasn't for nothing."

"...Thanks, I guess." Misaya sighed.

Fujino couldn't help but feel like Ouji was getting depressed, again.

"Do you need me to do anything?" Fujino asked. "If you need me to do anything, just let me know."

"...You've done enough." Misaya replied again. "I… Don't deserve any more than this anyway."

"Perhaps." Fujino continued. "But I want to help you regardless."

Misaya hummed, a sound that seemed to portray a somewhat pleasant reaction, but didn't reply for some time. The two girls waited in silence for some time, once again, before Misaya spoke once again.

"This has all been a mess." Misaya said. "And… I still don't fully get why you helped me. Or how you even knew where to look for me. But thank you. You were right, earlier. I'd probably be dead if it wasn't for you."

"I'm glad I could help you." Fujino stated. "I'm glad that you're okay."

"You were going back to Reien soon, weren't you?" Misaya asked.

"I'm taking the next train." Fujino explained. "I'll have to make my way to the station as soon as I leave here."

"I should stop keeping you, then." Misaya said. "I'm sure you have other people you want to talk to before you leave."

"Have you said everything you wanted to say?" Fujino asked. "Don't let me go too early because you want to be polite."

"I can't think of anything else to say anyway." Misaya admitted. "We'd just end up talking about the same thing over and over."

"If you say so." Fujino gave a polite bow. "I'll speak with you again, one day."

"I'll look forward to it."

Smiling, Fujino turned around. "Farewell, Misaya."

"Farewell, Asa… Fujino."

And with that, Fujino left the room.

The moment the door shut behind her, Fujino felt a surge of worry. Would Misaya be okay? Would she be safe, here?

She didn't think those feelings were going to change, anytime soon. So instead, she should just get used to them.

"How'd it go?" Tatsuki's voice suddenly spoke up, from Fujino's left.

"It went well." Fujino replied, beckoning Tatsuki in the direction towards the stairs. "Shall we go up?"

"Sure." Tatsuki replied. The two girls walked, and as they did, Fujino kept talking.

"So, what were you planning to do once I leave?" Fujino asked. "Your vacation is still on, isn't it?"

"For a bit more, yeah." Tatsuki replied. "Honestly, I have no idea. Maybe I'll dig a bit more into this supernatural stuff. Talking with ghosts."

"Are you sure?" Fujino asked. "From my experience, the supernatural world isn't something that brings joy."

"Maybe. But you said you're not interested in it much, so you'd probably only know of it when its forced upon you, right?"

"I suppose." Fujino mused.

"And besides." Tatsuki continued, as the girls started to make their ways up the stairs. "Maybe if I get some experience with this stuff, I can force Ichigo and Orihime to at least tell me the next time they go off to do something. Or get involved as well. Hold on, let me get the door."

Fujino paused for a moment, as she heard the door ahead of her open, and then felt Tatsuki take her hand again.

"Anyway, don't have much to do other than that." Tatsuki finished. "So I guess I'm just doing whatever until school starts again."

Suddenly, Urahara's voice spoke up.

"Is that so?" He asked. "Could I ask a favour then, Arisawa?"

"Depends." Tatsuki replied. "What is it?"

"I just need some things dealt with tomorrow, an extra pair of hands'll help out." Urahara explained. "I'll pass on some of the stuff you need to write a letter in braille as payment for your services, if you do."

"...Sure, I guess." Fujino felt Tatsuki's hand move as if she was shrugging. "Don't have anything better to do."

"Good, good." Urahara mused. "I'll see you tomorrow. August 13th, don't forget."

"I know what day it is tomorrow." Tatsuki sighed.

"My bad." Urahara apologised. "I'm used to kids like half your age, and they usually need it repeated a few times."

"Whatever." Tatsuki replied. "I'll drop by."

"My thanks." Urahara replied in a slight sing-song. "Now, I suppose the two of you will be on your way now?"

"I will be." Fujino stated. "Where did I leave my umbrella?"

"Here." Tatsuki said, letting go of Fujino's hand and putting the handle of the umbrella in its place.

"My thanks." Fujino nodded towards Tatsuki. "I suppose I should be on my way, now."

"On your way out, then?" Tatsuki asked.

"I should make my way towards the train station now, I think." Fujino replied. "Being there early in case of any delays might be smart."

"I see." Tatsuki mused. "I guess this is goodbye, then."

"You want to part ways here?" Fujino asked. "You could walk with me for a bit, if you want."

"I mean, tempting." Tatsuki replied. "But we're going to part ways anyway, and I'd prefer a goodbye somewhere quiet like here, rather than have to talk over whatever crowd or noise is at the station. Feels more meaningful if we aren't surrounded by people right?"

"I should probably give you two room, then." Urahara noted. Footsteps creaked against the floor, and then a door opened and closed.

"I'm going to miss you, Tatsuki." Fujino said. "I said it earlier, but I'm going to say it again. It was nice to know you."

"Same." Tatsuki replied. "It was fun talking with you. Teasing you about not being a perfect model student."

"I won't miss that." Fujino lied, smiling softly.

"Whatever, miss truant." Tatsuki teased. Fujino's eye twitched at the comment. "But seriously. I'll keep in contact when I can."

"I look forward to it." Fujino replied.

Silence hung in the air for a moment, before Fujino decided the conversation was done. She waited another moment, hesitating, to push off the moment of separation.

But eventually, she turned.

"Farewell, then. Tatsuki." Fujino stated. "I'll see you again, when I can."

"Goodbye, Fujino." Tatsuki said in reply. "I'll look forward to that day."

Smiling, Fujino began to walk away. Leaving Urahara's store behind, she stepped outside, holding the umbrella above her head as she stepped into the rain.

As she walked on her way, Fujino considered something for a moment. She couldn't just let herself feel the rain, not when she needed to catch a train, but being wet would only be an issue if her clothes were soaked. Perhaps, if she just stuck her hand out, she could enjoy the rain slightly.

There wasn't any lingering sensation without her ESP, no remaining sense of pain to feel the rain in detail. She could tell that the rain was landing on her hand, but nothing beyond that. Waiting for a moment, Fujino returned her hand to her umbrella again, and lightly touched her hand against her cheek.

It was like she was a child again. Back then, it had been a drop of rain. Now, it was the joy she felt in her heart, thinking about what had happened here. In this moment, Fujino could just ignore her concern, over whether it was right for her to exist or not.

Thinking about how she had been able to help Misaya, thinking about the friendship she had forged with Tatsuki, it made it easier to forget the guilt of her sins.

Asagami Fujino was happy.

 **A brief epilogue remains. From whose eyes shall it be seen?**

 **[X] Arisawa Tatsuki**  
 **[X] Kurosaki Ichigo**


	26. Chapter 26

**[X] Arisawa Tatsuki**

It had certainly been one hell of a week.

Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. It hadn't even been seven days since Arisawa Tatsuki first met Asagami Fujino, and everything has been resolved now. Unless _something else_ happened now, which would just be the worst.

Especially since Fujino was gone now.

Man, Tatsuki was gonna miss her. She was a good person. Kinda weird, and Tatsuki wasn't gonna pretend that the stuff with her past wasn't kinda messed up, but she was a good person. Went out of her way to do a whole bunch of stuff she didn't want to do because she wanted to do the right thing. A great friend.

Shame she was gone now. It'd probably be a while before Tatsuki got to see her again, either, which was a pain.

Not only that, now the only person Tatsuki could really talk to about the whole supernatural world thing was gone. That was a bit more of a selfish complaint, but it was another bother Tatsuki had.

Misaya didn't really want to talk, and Karin only wanted to be involved as far as she needed to be, in order to beat back any supernatural incursions into her life. Tatsuki really didn't want to talk to Kon, he looked too much like Ichigo and that made it weird. The staff at the Urahara store were either too much older or too much younger.

And it's not like Tatsuki could just go tell any of her other classmates. She'd sound insane if she went to tell everyone about all the ghost stuff. It's not like there was a pressing need for Tatsuki to talk about it either, no big emergency making it important that they knew.

If Ichigo and Orihime got back, then Tatsuki could talk to them about it, but as it was now? That wasn't just gonna be as convenient as meeting up with them and being able to talk with them. As much as she wanted to, Tatsuki knew it was gonna be harder than that to just get over it. They'd gone and rushed into danger without telling her anything. Tatsuki wasn't going to forgive that easily.

...If either of them had gotten hurt, Tatsuki was gonna be even more pissed. If they had planned on just not telling her that they'd gotten stabbed or something, Tatsuki was gonna punch Ichigo in the throat and…

...Figure out something with Orihime later. She wasn't as sturdy as Ichigo was so she'd probably feel really guilty from just Tatsuki being upset and then she wouldn't need to do anything else.

She'd figure it out later, though. It'd probably be a while before they got back anyway, so Tatsuki could figure out how to deal with the frustration when it got around to it.

Maybe she'd even decide to just let it go. Probably not, but it was a possibility. If someone told Tatsuki a week ago that she'd punch a ghost and be friends with a self-proclaimed murderer, she'd laugh in their face, but look now. So maybe a week from now she wouldn't care as much and just be satisfied letting them know how much she wishes they told her earlier.

Well, that was something to deal with later. It sounded like a headache, and right now, Tatsuki had something to do.

Urahara wanted her for something, apparently. No idea _what_ , but something. Tatsuki wasn't gonna pass up on the chance at getting the stuff she needed to write a letter to Fujino. She just hoped this was something reasonable.

Well, it couldn't be worse than what Tatsuki's gone through already. Urahara probably wasn't gonna hospitalise her.

Well, time to see what was gonna go on here.

Opening the door and stepping into Urahara's store, Tatsuki looked around.

The place really did look like a candy store here, huh? Looks were really deceiving when it came to the supernatural.

...Well, Hollows always looked creepy, so they're honest. It's more the humans involved in the supernatural who are deceptive like that. Fujino had her secrets, Misaya apparently wasn't like this before, people owning a candy store were also experts on the magical stuff, and Tatsuki's best friends never even gave a hint that they were involved in stuff like this.

Man, what if there was more supernatural stuff in Karakura that Tatsuki had just never noticed because it was all hidden too? If Tatsuki just headed to the main hospital and walked in, what's the chances of her bumping into someone who knew about Hollows, and neither of them would realise that the other knows about this stuff?

...Well, maybe Tatsuki was getting a bit worried there. If there were more people aware of the supernatural world in Karakura Town, then one of them probably would've gotten involved when Misaya was draining memories from anyone who saw her. Unless she got lucky and avoided everyone, it didn't seem likely.

"Hey, Arisawa." Urahara greeted casually. He wasn't looking at Tatsuki, instead paying attention to a black cat that was on the counter in front of him. "Nice to see you here."

"Urahara." Tatsuki greeted back. "What did you want me to do? You said you needed some extra hands or something, what with?"

"Hold on." Urahara replied. "The cat's been gone for a week now."

"Five days, or thirteen, depending on who's counting." The black cat replied.

...Well, Tatsuki was almost shocked by that. But after everything, a talking cat didn't seem that much out of it. Cats were a common thing in most folklore, of course there was supernatural cats here.

"Be nice, Yoruichi." Urahara continued. "I never told Arisawa about you, she's probably shocked right now."

"Not really." Tatsuki shrugged. "Honestly, I'm surprised I hadn't run into a talking animal before now."

"It really does lose the novelty quickly." The cat, apparently called Yoruichi replied. "So, this is the girl involved in the incident I missed?"

"One of them." The man replied. "Ouji's in a room downstairs, Asagami's gone already."

"Are we just going to keep inviting lost children to live here?" The cat asked. "I didn't think we were running an orphanage."

"Technically, this one isn't an orphan." Urahara replied. "So, where are the others, anyway?"

"Making their way up." Yoruichi replied. "They were taking a moment to catch their breath by the Senkaimon. Dangai travel can be stressful, you know."

Tatsuki did not, in fact, know. What was the cat talking about? And who were the others, in this scenario?

"So, how was the time dilation on that thing this time?" Urahara asked. "You mentioned it was thirteen days on your end, but you could've gained them in either direction."

"We gained seven days on the way there." Yoruichi replied. "And… What date is it now?"

"Thirteenth." Urahara replied.

"Oh, that's convenient." The cat mused. "The time flow was consistent this time."

"Nice." Urahara nodded. "Anyway, you hungry? Cat foods been wasting away on the shelf for the last five days."

"So, you wanted me here for something?" Tatsuki asked, trying to distract Urahara.

"Just some handiwork." Urahara replied. "I think the shelves in the back haven't been dusted in a while, for instance. Free stuff if you do it, you know."

The cat hummed. "You know, I feel like she might be a bit too distracted to do that."

"...Why do you say that?" As Tatsuki spoke, she heard the door to the stairs down open.

A familiar voice called out. "Oi, Urahara, where-"

Tatsuki turned towards the source, and came face to face with Kurosaki Ichigo.

The two looked at each other for a few seconds, as the words on Ichigo's lips died. He was dressed in some kind of black robe, and had a certain spiritual look to him. More solid than any other ghost Tatsuki had observed before, but still undoubtedly ghostly. Which, makes sense, Kon was apparently in his body right now.

After a moment of silent staring, Tatsuki noticed a hand waving behind Ichigo.

"Hi, Tatsuki!" Orihime chirped, sounding forced. "It's nice to see you. I, uh, totally just got back, and I wanted to buy some candy befo-"

May as well get started with this. "Ichigo."

Orihime fell silent as well, while Ichigo closed his eyes. He must know what's coming next, then.

"...Don't be silly." Orihime replied. "I'm not Ichig-"

"I can see him." Tatsuki interrupted. "I've had a few busy days. Got some answers out of Kon."

"...I see…" Orihime stepped around Ichigo so she was fully visible to the side, instead of only visible to people who would be seeing through Ichigo. "Uh…"

Behind the two of them, Tatsuki saw Chad briefly, climbing the stairs, before he stopped as well.

Him, Tatsuki didn't care as much about. He was more Ichigo's friend than hers. It still hurt, but it wasn't as deep as with Tatsuki's two best friends.

"This is your fault, Urahara." Ichigo accused.

"Hey, who cares." Tatsuki replied, a biting tone to her voice. "What did Kon call them again? Shinigami? When were you planning to tell me you'd been off fighting Shinigami, Ichigo?"

"...You weren't meant to know." Ichigo replied. "Ever. How'd you-"

"Of course I found out." Tatsuki interrupted. "There's Hollows all over the place in this town, of course I'd stumble into something eventually."

"You'd gone fifteen years without knowing before know." Ichigo replied. "Should've gone the rest of your life not knowing."

Stepping forward, Tatsuki grabbed Ichigo's collar and pulled him towards her. "Excuse me?"

"What would you have preferred then?" Ichigo asked. "To get pulled into this mess as well?"

"Of course I would have." Tatsuki snapped back. "Would you rather have kept me in the dark forever? So when you guys are messed up or hurt, I just have to wonder why? So if something goes wrong and you don't make it, I never find out what happened?"

"Tatsuki." Orihime spoke up quietly, from the side. "Please calm down. Let him go."

Tatsuki looked over at Orihime for a second, then took a breath.

Damn it, she almost wishes she didn't run into them right away. She should've figured out what to say here earlier, damn it.

Pushing Ichigo back, Tatsuki sighed loudly.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked. "Either of you."

Still on the stairs, Chad spoke up. "Tatsuki, I also-"

"Yeah, you didn't say anything either." Tatsuki interrupted." I'm not so happy about that, either. But we're hardly best friends. I haven't known you as long. Ichigo, you've been lying to me since we were kids! I asked if the rumours were true, if you could really see ghosts, and you lied to me!"

Chad fell silent, and Tatsuki glared at Ichigo again.

"Tatsuki." Orihime spoke up, an apologetic tone to her voice. "I… I wanted to tell you. But I also didn't want to? It's just… You won't remember them, but we were attacked by Hollows a few times, before this happened. Each time, you…"

She trailed off, before trying something else. "I didn't think there was a point in telling you. They kept taking the memory from you. And if I had gotten power while being attacked, and you didn't, I didn't think that was going to change."

Tatsuki had considered the possibility, before now. But outright hearing Orihime admit that they had been attacked? And that she didn't remember?

Just what had happened?

"Did you ever try anyway?" Tatsuki asked. "Did I forget you telling me all this before? Or did you never try to think of just letting me know after I got my memory erased?"

Orihime's eyes widened in surprise. So the idea had never occurred to her anyway.

"Why would you even want to know?" Ichigo asked. "You wouldn't have been in danger. The times you and Orihime got attacked were outliers, there was circumstances."

"I was attacked like four days ago!" Tatsuki replied. "If I wasn't saved by a passing stranger, I could be dead right now!"

"What?" Ichigo asked. "When did…"

"So why didn't you tell me?" Tatsuki asked. "What was your reasoning? Even if I was never at risk of being hurt in the first place, why wouldn't you let me know that you guys were in danger? Aren't we friends?"

There was a heavy silence for a moment, and Tatsuki could feel her frustration building up again at the lack of answers.

...Fuck it.

Tatsuki turned away from the group.

"Whatever." She muttered, before storming off.

She couldn't deal with this right now.

She didn't want to just keep getting angrier and angrier, and since nobody was giving an actual answer, staying wasn't gonna lead anywhere good.

Pushing her way out of the Urahara shop, Tatsuki ignored the shopkeeper calling after her, as she made her way down the street.

...What a goddamn mess.

Controlling her breathing as she thought, Tatsuki started thinking about how to actually approach this situation.

Ichigo and Orihime, neither of them seemed to think Tatsuki would've been in any danger if Tatsuki had never known about Hollows. But, that didn't matter. That wasn't the core of Tatsuki's anger.

She was angry because they hadn't told her, because they didn't rely on her. Because they didn't trust her with the information.

Alright then. Time to actually think about what she wants from this.

To be trusted. Relied on. Included. To know what's going on, what's happened, and why she wasn't told earlier.

A bitter voice at the back of Tatsuki's head told her to get back at her friends, to let them stew in their guilt and the knowledge that she's mad at them, but Tatsuki pushed that away. She was angry, but that wasn't going to solve anything.

When she'd gotten all emotional and tried to force her relevance in a conversation with Ouji and Fujino, she'd messed up and made the problem worse. When she just handled her emotions and told Fujino that she didn't care about whatever Fujino had done in the past, it all worked out.

So even if her first instinct was to just pin Ichigo to a wall and twist his arm until he spoke, that wasn't gonna help.

"Tatsuki."

Ichigo's voice behind Tatsuki was calm, and Tatsuki took a moment to process that he'd caught up to her, and she hadn't heard him running or anything.

Turning to face him, Tatsuki suppressed her initial instinct.

"What?" Tatsuki couldn't stop the bitterness seeping into her voice.

Ichigo took a moment to reply, before he responded.

"I'm sorry." He said, not meeting her eye. "For a lot of things. For not handling that better there, and for not telling you anything."

"...I'm probably overreacting too." Tatsuki admitted. "I'm trying not to lose my temper now, but I want some answers."

"I'll give them, then." Ichigo replied. "Because it sounds like something happened when I was gone. Hollows usually go after family members or people with a lot of spiritual power, so I'm not sure why you got attacked."

"It happens, apparently."

"It shouldn't." Ichigo replied. "I've apparently got more spiritual pressure than most people, and I still got sought after by a Hollow once before I actively got involved."

"Guess the Hollows were pissed off, then." Tatsuki replied. "Karin got attacked the day after, you know."

"She what?" Ichigo asked, and Tatsuki regretted mentioning it this soon. Now it was all he was going to care about. "Is she-"

"She's fine." Tatsuki replied. "And she's taking steps to avoid a repeat. But stop getting distracted."

Ichigo was clearly uncomfortable with just letting that subject go, but apparently noticing how pissed Tatsuki was, he kept it to himself.

"So tell me." Tatsuki demanded. "What was going through your head? Why didn't you tell anything to anyone?"

Ichigo took a long time to reply.

"Same reason I said I couldn't see ghosts." He admitted. "I didn't want to drag other people into my problems if I could help it."

"And Orihime?" Tatsuki asked. "Chad?"

"Ishida was there too, you probably missed him." Ichigo mentioned. "And I can't say what's going on in their heads. Probably the same thing, though. No need to make you worry about something you can't change."

"And if we switched places?" Tatsuki asked. "If I was the one risking my life and leaving you in the dark? How'd you feel about that?"

Ichigo didn't reply.

"...I know this is selfish of me." Tatsuki admitted, looking away herself. "But I hate feeling powerless. I hate the feeling that you guys couldn't rely on me enough to tell me what was up. The people responsible for the memory wipes were the Shinigami guys, right?"

"Yeah." Ichigo admitted.

"So could you have told me after they all left?"

"I could have." Ichigo admitted. "I didn't think it'd matter. I don't see why someone would want to be involved in this stuff."

"I want to be involved because the people I know are involved." Tatsuki countered. "Again, it'd be the same if our positions were reversed."

"I'm sorry." Ichigo admitted. "I'll keep you informed, now. But please. Don't get involved."

"Why not?"

"Because this stuff is dangerous." Ichigo admitted. "If I could stay out of it, I would. If I could keep anyone out of it, I would. But I've got friends deeper in who are probably gonna end up in danger because of recent developments, and if I can keep you guys out of it, I can-"

Tatsuki grabbed Ichigo by the collar again, and pulled him closer.

"Don't you dare." Tatsuki interrupted. "If something's happening, include me. If you're risking your life, either stay out of it or I'm coming in too. You hear me?"

Ichigo pulled back, with such sudden force that Tatsuki's grip fell away immediately.

"There's a world of difference between Hollows like in Karakura and what's going on." Ichigo replied. "If-"

"I don't care about the specifics." Tatsuki interrupted. "We're friends, right?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Then rely on me." Tatsuki continued. "Let me help. I don't care beyond that."

"...I don't want people risking their lives for my sake." Ichigo said.

"And I don't want to be powerless again." Tatsuki replied. "I want to help, Ichigo. Let me help. Let me know you trust me enough to help."

"...How about a compromise, then." Ichigo replied, looking to the side. "I'll tell you what I know, and since you've apparently got supernatural power now, I'll help you figure out how to use them. But if something big happens, you need to stay safe."

"Only if the same goes for you." Tatsuki replied. "Only if you'll run away from danger as well."

"Tatsuki, listen." Ichigo continued. "I get it. It sucks being powerless. But the first time I got involved in a Hollow fight, I got in the way between the Hollow and it's hunter. Rukia got hurt bad saving me because I was a dumbass. If I'd stayed out of it, she would've killed it just fine."

Turning to actually meet Tatsuki's eyes, Ichigo continued. "I know this sucks to hear, but sometimes it's more important to just leave it to the people more capable. So yeah, I'll tell you everything, I'll rely on you. But don't jump into dangerous situations."

"Like running off into the Shinigami base to rescue someone from a group of people where two nearly killed you?"

Ichigo didn't reply.

"It shouldn't come to that anyway." Tatsuki said. "But if things happen, I'm being included."

"...We can talk about this later." Ichigo said. "Out in the open isn't the best place for this, and apparently I need to talk to my sister about her being in danger while I was gone. But I'm sorry."

Well, it was better than nothing at least.

"Fine." Tatsuki shrugged. "This isn't over, Ichigo, but fine. We can talk later."

A moment passed, and Tatsuki sighed.

"Is Orihime still at Urahara's place?" Tatsuki asked. "I feel like I should go talk to her, now."

"She should still be there." Ichigo replied. "Not sure about Chad or Ishida, but before I left, some girl with purple hair had come out to see what the noise was, and Orihime had started talking to her. Odds are, they're still talking."

...Orihime was talking with Ouji?

Well, hopefully that went well. Maybe Ouji would benefit off of someone as cheerful as Orihime talking to her.

Still, Tatsuki should go talk with Orihime herself now. She stormed off in a pretty bad mood, she should go make sure it was all alright.

"I'll see you later, then." Tatsuki sighed, before making her way back to Urahara's store.

It didn't take long to get back, and once in, Urahara was the only person at the counter.

"Hey, you're back." He said. "I was afraid you'd cancelled."

"Your friend is downstairs." The talking cat said, from the other side of the room. "She's talking with Ouji."

"Thank you." Tatsuki nodded, making her way down as well.

Man, she'd been here a lot recently.

Reaching the first level down, Tatsuki noticed an open door and vaguely heard Orihime talking on for a bit.

Knocking on the door, Tatsuki caught the tail-end of what might have been a conversation but also could have been Orihime just talking.

"-t was kinda weird, you know? Like, my hairclip is technically people now. Kinda. I don't really know how it works but it turns into fairies whenever I need them."

"...I see…" Ouji replied, sounding like she had understood as much as the conversation as Tatsuki had. The knock came as a welcome relief, then, as she turned towards the door. Orihime followed her gaze, and as her eyes turned towards Tatsuki, her expression grew more serious.

"Hey." Tatsuki waved. "Orihime."

"Hi, Tatsuki." Orihime tried to smile, as she stood.

"Sorry about earlier." Tatsuki said. "I shouldn't have been so mad."

"No, no, it's fine." Orihime replied. "I, uh…"

"Should I be here?" Ouji asked. "This seems-"

"Oh, my bad." Orihime said. "Hold on, lemme just…"

She moved away, and Tatsuki moved away to give Orihime room to exit the room. She shut the door without looking back, and the two girls stood there, for a while.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you anything, Tatsuki." Orihime said, looking away. "I… It was really confusing. A lot of stuff happened all at once. It's not an excuse, I know, but like… I got attacked twice, and then the first time I barely remembered it until later and the second time I had to defend you, and I really didn't know how to talk about any of it."

"...I know I'm being selfish here." Tatsuki admitted. "But was it too much to ask for you to rely on me for this? It's… I thought, after everything…"

"The second time I was attacked by a Hollow." Orihime began. "It was… It had some kind of trick. It would throw seeds into people, and use those seeds to control them. You fought it for a bit, though you don't remember anymore. And then it got you too.

Meeting Tatsuki's eyes, Orihime continued. "That's when I got my powers. I was able to protect you. Back then, I felt… Happy. That I was able to protect you. Like you always protected me at school, after my brother died. I never really thought about it, but maybe that's why. I wanted to keep protecting you from that kind of world. Where both times I was attacked by a Hollow, you ended up bloodied and defeated."

Those words stung, and Tatsuki averted her eyes as the mental image of her ending up like that in front of Orihime passed through her mind.

"...Well, I've got power now." Tatsuki said. "Not much, but some. And I haven't worked out a proper deal with Ichigo but he's promised to help me figure out a bit more about this."

Looking at Orihime again, Tatsuki continued. "It's just… You still left. Went off to a place full of people who apparently tried to kill Ichigo. What would have happened if you'd died?"

"...I didn't think about it." Orihime admitted. "But I am now. Promise. And…"

Stepping forward, Orihime grabbed Tatsuki's hand.

"I promise." Orihime repeated. "No more secrets. I'll tell you everything now. I don't want to make you upset again."

"...Thanks." Tatsuki replied. "Just… Let me be there, if you're going to run into danger again. Again, I know it's selfish, but it makes me happy, knowing people can rely on me."

"Only if it goes both ways." Orihime decided. "If you get to be selfish, so do I. And I want to pay you back. For looking after me when my brother died, for cheering me up, for being my friend. If I'm going to rely on you, I want you to rely on me too!"

Tatsuki smiled. "Sure."

"So, what even happened when I was gone?" Orihime asked, the cheerful tone to her voice more natural now. "How'd you get to seeing ghosts? What kind of power did you get from it? How'd you meet Urahara? Wha-"

She was cut off but the sound of the door creaking, and Tatsuki looked over to the room Orihime had just left. There, with her hand on the door, unmoving as eyes moved towards her, was Ouji Misaya.

"Sorry." She said, looking away. "The door wasn't closed properly, I didn't mean to overhear, I was just going to close it…"

"It's fine, it's fine." Orihime waved off. "I'm sure you didn't mean to eavesdrop on anything, so it's fine."

Ouji shifted her gaze towards Orihime's directions, but was still looking down.

"...Your brother died?" She asked.

Orihime's face froze momentarily, but she recovered quickly. "Yeah, a while ago. You overheard that, then?"

"How are you…" Ouji began, before trailing off.

It was at that point Tatsuki could make a guess as to where Ouji was going with this. Orihime had been rambling to her earlier and was generally a cheerful person, while Ouji's own loss was still fresh. Hearing that Orihime had lost someone as well, without details, would raise the question of how she had gotten over it this well. It wasn't surprising that Ouji, who had been so consumed by her loss and her guilt, would want to know more.

What did surprise Tatsuki, however, was the flicker of comprehension that showed on Orihime's face, and the gentle tone she took when she spoke.

"It was a long time ago, now." Orihime said. "It hurt a lot at the time, and it still does now, kind of. But it got easier when time passed, and I had friends helping me. So now it's easier."

Ouji looked up at Orihime's face for a second, before looking down again. She was silent, and after a second, Orihime talked again, suddenly shifting the subject.

"I like your hair, you know." Orihime declared. "It's a nice shade. Did you cut it recently?"

Ouji blinked.

"..,Yes." She replied. "It… I was in a rush. It's not very good…"

"It's not that bad." Orihime mused. "And if you want to tidy it up, it probably wouldn't be too hard."

"...I wish I'd left it longer." Ouji muttered.

"Is that so?" Orihime asked, putting a hand to her hairpin momentarily. "Want me to fix that up for you?"

"You can do that?" Tatsuki asked.

"Yeah, it's like a healing thing." Orihime explained. "So I just need to heal the hair back. Or something like that. Like this!"

Pulling her hand away from her hairpin, Orihime pointed at Ouji's hair. Two figures emerged from her hairpin, shifted form, and surrounded the area Orihime was pointing at.

"Ayame, Shun'o." Orihime intoned. "Soten Kisshun- I reject!"

An orange shield formed around the back of Ouji's hair, between the two figures, and after a moment, Ouji's hair began to grow back.

Tatsuki stared, for a moment, until the shield vanished and the two figures flew back into Orihime's hairpin. Ouji took a moment to feel her hair, which looked about as long as Fujino's had been.

"Pretty neat, huh?" Orihime asked.

Ouji smiled. "Thank you."

Come to think of it, Tatsuki didn't know the full details, but she could guess that Ouji cutting her hair was meant to be some kind of way of avoiding recognition. Didn't Fujino describe her as having long hair when she first arrived, before they knew Ouji was the one with the fairies?

So maybe getting her hair back meant a lot to her. Like some kind of way of saying that she wasn't hiding while she dug around for a way to revive her friend. Or maybe she just preferred it long and was just happy with that. Still, she seemed happy with it.

And with that thought on the way, how long has Orihime been able to do that?

"Um." Ouji said, looking at Tatsuki. "I'll give you two some privacy again? I don't want to be a bother."

"Oh, thank you." Orihime said. "Me and Tatsuki still have a bunch to talk about. But you seem pretty nice. If you wanna talk later, I don't mind."

Ouji looked at Orihime for a moment, before bowing her head.

"Thank you." She said plainly, before stepping back into the room. The door shut, securely this time, and Orihime turned back to Tatsuki.

"She seemed nice." Orihime mused. "Kinda sad, though. Do you know what happened?"

"...It's a long story." Tatsuki replied. "Part of how I got into this supernatural stuff to start with."

"You're smiling." Orihime noted. "And not like a casual smile either. Like a smile you make when something happened that you weren't expecting that makes you happy. What's up with that?"

Noticing her own smile herself, Tatsuki turned towards the door.

"...I guess I am happy, huh?" Tatsuki noted.

Tatsuki had to admit, she wasn't sure what to think of Ouji. So far, she'd only ever seen Ouji when she was at her worst. Even if Tatsuki didn't hold that against her, she just genuinely didn't know enough of the girl to have much of an opinion on her. Her losing her friend and getting so caught up in her grief and guilt was sad and all, but that's really all Tatsuki knew.

But Fujino had sure been invested in seeing Ouji happy, so by proxy, so was Tatsuki. She was looking forward to passing the news on to Fujino at a bare minimum, and even without that, people being happy was just generally something to be happy about.

Maybe Orihime spending time with Ouji would do her some good, then. Especially since Orihime was apparently way more perceptive about things than Tatsuki would have expected of her.

"But back to talking now." Orihime decided. "No secrets and all that. Do you want me to start? I do want to know what happened to you when I was gone, but I get it, I kinda didn't tell you things first, it's probably fair if I say everything first."

"...Nah." Tatsuki replied. "I'll talk first. I'm not as mad anymore, and you're probably wondering what's up with Ouji."

"Oh, is that her name?" Orihime asked. "That's a nice name. How did you meet her."

"It's a long story."

It was almost hard to believe how few days ago it had started. But at least, Tatsuki mused, it had all worked out in the end. She'd had her chance to talk with Ichigo and Orihime, and even if she was still a bit mad, she was already talking casually with Orihime again. Ouji seemed like she was holding it together decently, and had found someone to talk to. And last she'd seen her, Fujino had been in a fairly good mood as well.

It was nice, knowing that everything had wrapped up happily. And even if her contribution to it had been minor in the grand scheme of things, Tatsuki was glad she'd been able to help things end up so well.

She just hoped that Fujino as as satisfied with her contributions to this conclusion as she should have been.

Honestly, Tatsuki wasn't entirely sure what to make of Fujino either. She was a nice girl. Polite, maybe a bit too concerned with appearances, and sure went a hell of a long way for what started with 'Finding a classmate who had gone missing and was kinda sad.' She had also killed a bunch of people, and Tatsuki didn't overly care, but Fujino was carrying that guilt everywhere.

That part of the story, Tatsuki probably shouldn't mention to Orihime.

But, at the end of the day, Tatsuki didn't really know what was going through Fujino's head. Whatever she'd taken from this whole experience, Tatsuki wasn't sure.

She just hoped that Asagami Fujino was proud of what she'd been able to do here. That she was happy. With that one glimpse Tatsuki had gotten into Fujino's head, when the two of them were in the abandoned store, she could tell that Fujino had a lot on her mind, too.

After all of that, and all she'd done in Karakura, she deserved a little joy.


End file.
